The Twisted Games
by PastaWar19
Summary: The characters of DRRR are in the 100th Hunger Games. Which one will be the sole victor of these twisted games and which ones will bleed and die in the deadly arena? This time, the odds might never be in your favor. Some romance, lots of violence
1. The Reaping

**Sorry for those who were expecting a new chapter from Opposing Destiny or For Justice, Romance, and Good Health. I will update those two stories as soon as possible! Meanwhile, here's a new one. :D**

**I was overjoyed to find out that no one had yet written a story about the characters of Durarara entering the Hunger Games. I seized the opportunity at once, of course. If you don't recognize some characters here, then they're from the DRRR light novels or manga. I haven't read those either but I did extensive research online to fill up the missing spots for tributes. I suck at making OCs. I only watched the anime. **

**For Durarara fans who aren't into the Hunger Games: it's about twenty-four people tasked to kill each other in an arena. Only one victor gets out alive. This happens every year. Every twenty-five years, it's called a Quarter Quell and those are more deadly and extreme. If you want more details, go to Wikipedia.**

**For Hunger Games fans who might get confused: the rebellion in Mockingjay failed. Katniss and friends all died. The Capitol still rules Panem and no main characters from the first two books are alive. Or are they? *winks***

**I don't own Durarara or the Hunger Games.**

* * *

Chapter One

The Reaping

It was the fourth Quarter Quell. It was the year everyone in the Twelve Districts dreaded the most, since it was sure to be the most brutal and extreme Games ever. President Snow didn't disappoint anyone- it truly was inhuman. The arena was the most deadly arena in all of Panem's history and the Quell's twist was cruel.

The twist of the year's Games was that only one tribute, still following the 12-18 year old age limit, would be chosen per district and that whoever would be picked would have to choose an older fellow tribute of the opposite gender that would come to the arena as well. Volunteering was available for those still within the age limit. The said act was rare, though; only Career Districts like 1, 2, and 4 would have volunteers. Most of the people of Panem hated the Hunger Games, especially the deadly Quarter Quells. This year, not only would an unlucky person be doomed to risk his or her life, but also doomed to risk some older person's life too.

Snow and the Gamemakers probably planned this to show that despite the youth being put at risk of joining the Games, the older citizens of the Districts were still in danger too. Whatever happened, the Capitol would still be in control of each and every person residing in the country of Panem. It was as dictatorial and dystopian as ever.

Welcome to the 100th Hunger Games.

* * *

**District One**

Vorona Juvilova walked briskly towards the crowd near the stage, placing her hands casually in her pockets. Her father stood calmly behind her, his pride emanating from his upright posture. Her mother was dead ever since she was born. She had no siblings.

Ever since the new rule of the Quell was announced, Vorona knew right away who she would bring along to the arena with her. Who else was older than her and of the opposite gender that deserved to have a chance at the Games? Who else was the only friend she ever had in her life?

District One's representative stepped forward eagerly, greeted everyone with a smile, and wasted no time in choosing the very first tribute. This year, apparently, both male and female names of those from 12 to 18 years old were in the jar, so most teenagers in the crowd were crossing their fingers to be chosen.

Vorona held her breath as the representative pulled one little slip of paper from all the others. She bit her lip. This was her last chance to be part of the Hunger Games, to prove to everyone that she was the strongest- she was already 18 years old. Moments passed and then-

"Topaz Meilix!"

Vorona clenched her fists. The girl who walked past her was only 12 years old, still stepping forward with a pathetically obvious nervous step but brimming with ignorant determination. She was blonde, like her, but that was the only similarity they had with each other. Tributes like this young teen usually ended up dead on the first day.

"I volunteer!" Vorona said loudly, her icy blue eyes glaring at the young girl who turned around in surprise. "You have a few more years for a chance, girl. Why don't you wait a bit longer first?"

She tried not to skip to the stage, happy with the fact that no one was stopping her. Her father was even smiling, amused. She stood confidently next to the district representative and scanned the crowd, looking for her partner-in-crime.

The representative asked her, "So darling, what's your name? And who's your fellow tribute going to be?"

Vorona didn't hesitate as she finally found the dark eyes of her friend in the crowd. She ignored all the other older people waving at her to get her attention and ask for her to choose them. She grinned widely, knowing the perfect ex-Career who missed the chance of a lifetime, and replied, "I'm Vorona Juvilova and I want Slon Ortolski to come with me to the arena."

* * *

**District Two**

It was noisy in District Two, since people everywhere were bargaining with each other to partner up if ever the other was called. Anri knew better. She didn't want someone she knew or someone who threatened her to be her fellow tribute. She would rather choose a completely unsuspecting and harmless person so there would be one obstacle less during the Games. That was one difference between her and the girl tribute from District One.

Anri stood patiently, waiting for the district representative to appear and start the ceremony already. She removed her glasses and cleaned them with her handkerchief. Just when she put them back on, a muscular man in his 40s that looked terribly like a gorilla marched in front of her and the other girls and began talking to them.

"If ever any of you pretties would be picked as tribute, I should be the one you bring along with you! Otherwise, I'll take it out on your families! Who are you pixies going to choose, anyway? Cowards like these?" he said coolly.

He pulled some random man walking by to his side. The passerby had glasses and dark brown, shoulder-length hair. He was thin, probably around 23 or 24 years old, and was wearing a white coat, meaning that he was a doctor. "Excuse me?" he asked politely, his eyes showing slight irritation.

The gorilla (he really looked like it anyway) ignored him and continued speaking to Anri and the other girls. "Guys like this aren't worth it. If you don't choose me, I'm definitely going to do more than hurt your families-"

"I won't bring you along with me. You'll be an obstacle. Besides, I don't have a family or anyone I care about that you can kill," Anri interrupted nonchalantly. Her red eyes glinted behind her glasses. "You can't control me."

Before anything else could happen, the representative finally arrived onstage and started the calling of the names as soon as possible. The gorilla went off furiously without another glance while the doctor gave Anri a strange look before walking off towards his place.

A piece of paper was already out of the jar. It was slowly opened, and then-

"Anri Sonohara!"

Anri didn't smile or grin. She kept her emotionless mask on and climbed up the stage, shaking her head as she watched the other willing volunteers almost step forward in anger. The gorilla glared at her and she couldn't help but smirk. She watched herself on the screens visible to every citizen in Panem- finally, she was a tribute! She didn't have to wait for 18 years old to volunteer; she was 16 and already a tribute!

"Miss Anri? Who will your companion be?" the representative asked kindly, bringing her back to reality.

Anri frowned. She almost forgot about that part. She didn't really know any weak man older than her since she mostly kept to herself. Then suddenly, while scanning the crowd, her eyes met the doctor's. He seemed to know his fate because there was a short spark of realization in his eyes before he quickly looked away.

She pointed at him. "You."

There were groans from the crowd as several other ex-Careers had their final chance taken away from them. The doctor wasn't angry or sad. He was simply disheartened as he joined her on the stage, giving her a half-smile as they shook hands. "I'm Shinra Kishitani."

The representative smiled. "Okay then! Shinra and Anri from District Two, everyone!"

* * *

**District Three**

They were both holding his hands- the older twin holding his right and the younger twin his left. This was unusual. Pushing them away was usual. This time, however, he couldn't bring himself to do so. They were holding on too tightly. This was only a yearly occurrence, anyway, and it would be over soon.

However, there was now a chance that two of the three black-haired siblings could be entering the arena as well.

"Iza-nii…"

"What do we do if either Kururi or I get chosen?"

"Yes, what?"

Izaya Orihara scowled as he looked down at Mairu and Kururi, staring up at him with the same dark red eyes as his. He didn't exactly love them much but they were still his sisters. It was obviously his responsibility to protect them and it would be unbearable for one twin to live without the other. He could imagine Mairu quietly sitting in a corner for the rest of her life or Kururi screaming insanities in a white room.

Izaya pulled away from the two and crossed his arms over his chest. "I don't know. Do what you want."

Mairu clenched her fists. "What's that supposed to mean? We don't know what we should do! Should we call on you to come along to the arena or escape or-"

"I already said that I didn't know!" he yelled at her angrily. People around them stared, but not for long. They continued worrying for themselves as well. The twins avoided his eyes. They probably figured out that he had no intention of risking his life for one of them anyway. He wasn't the ideal brother.

The district representative came forward. Soon enough, the unlucky person's name was already in her glittering hands. The paper was unfolded. Everyone waited with bated breath.

"Mairu Orihara."

Izaya froze. He felt himself turn pale and turned to look at his sisters. Mairu seemed to be in shock. He was about to say something to her when Kururi pushed him aside and walked forward.

"Volunteer," she said plainly.

Mairu stepped beside her. "K-Kururi… What are you doing? Don't do this!"

"No. Not you."

"But I can't let you-!" The tears flowed from her eyes.

"No. Not you." Kururi's voice was soft but firm.

"Stop this! They called my name. I can survive this!"

Izaya gripped Mairu's shoulders and turned her to face him. "Look, I don't like the idea of any one of you two going to the Hunger Games but we have no choice. Kururi really wants to go in your place."

Mairu frowned. "So do I!"

"But you're in tears, you're not calm at all, and she seems a lot like nothing can stop her. You're from District Three, Mairu. Don't be stupid," Izaya reasoned, trying to keep his cool. "I can't believe I'm saying this but I will let Kururi bring me along to the arena. I won't let her die. I promise."

"You what? But then-"

"If your roles were reversed, I'd still do the same thing. I really can't let one of you die. The other would go crazy and be incapable of living if that would happen."

"Iza-nii, it would be horrible too if you died instead!"

Izaya patted her head and smiled. "Seriously? It doesn't matter anymore." The district representative's voice rang out, alerting them that they didn't have all day. He turned to the other twin. "Kururi, go up the stage. And you better choose me to come along with you. Now."

Kururi hugged Mairu, steeled herself, and did as Izaya told her, climbing up the stage and standing shakily beside the district representative. The woman turned to her and cheerfully exclaimed, "You're Mairu's twin, aren't you? How old are you both?"

"Thirteen."

"I see. And what's your name?"

"Kururi."

"Well then, Kururi, I bet the fellow tribute you're going to choose is your handsome brother right there!"

She did her best to remain expressionless and nodded.

Izaya let go of Mairu's hand and went up the stage, giving the worst glare he could give at the cameras as he took his place beside his other little sister. The screens showed him looking exactly the way he wanted- deadly, sly, and ready to kill. Before the representative could ask him his name, the 23 year old cut her off coldly.

"I'm Izaya Orihara."

It was going to be interesting. Twenty-four humans all pitted against each other to kill. Izaya loved humans, which might be the reason why he allowed Kururi to call on him. He could observe them, help them, and manipulate them whatever way he could. Yes, Izaya was definitely going to make the Quarter Quell interesting.

* * *

**District Four**

Ran Izumii stood tall in the crowd of District Four citizens waiting for the names to be called. Beside him was his little brother, Aoba, who looked like he wanted to be anywhere but there.

"You want to know what I think?" Ran asked, grinning. He didn't wait for a reply. "I think you've got no chance of surviving if ever you get reaped. It would be great to see you die a bloody death in the arena, though. It would be even better if I get the reaped tribute to choose me so I can get a chance to win the damn thing."

Aoba frowned. "No one would want to choose you. And I do stand a chance in the Games."

"Oh please. You can't even beat me at breathing longest underwater."

"Just because our parents pay attention to me more doesn't mean you have to rub every single thing in my face!"

Before Ran could answer scathingly, the Reaping had started. The district representative was excited to say the least, beaming at all of them and saying how wonderful it was that she was assigned to District Four. A few flirtatious remarks later, she finally began drawing the name from the jar.

"Rio Kamichika!"

An audible gasp was heard from the ladies at the right side. The brunette was wearing pigtails and she seemed to be around 15 years old. She walked anxiously to the stage and was obviously avoiding looking at the cameras.

Ran smirked. "Prove to me that you do stand a chance in the Games. Volunteer."

Aoba remained silent. He knew that his brother was just looking for a way to get him killed, but if he could actually win the Quarter Quell… It would be all fame and glory for him, plus being able to show that he was stronger and more powerful than everyone thought.

"Any volunteers?"

He could practically feel his brother's harsh eyes on him, urging him to step forward. His parents did love him, right? They were probably behind him and his brother, wondering what their sons are talking about. No, maybe it wasn't worth it. Maybe his purpose in life wasn't to win the deadly Games but to continue trying to lead the-

"Okay then, Rio. Now choose your fellow tribute!"

Aoba couldn't help but clench his fists as Ran gestured to the girl to pick him. The girl fixed her eyes on the older Izumii brother. Everyone knew Ran, anyway. He was the most vicious and menacing citizen in District Four.

"I choose… Ran Izumii."

There was a cold silence as the reality of letting Ran Izumii into the Hunger Games washed over everyone. He was known for attempting to kidnap people for fun, 'accidentally' breaking someone's legs, and picking on kids. It was certain- the winner of the Quell would be coming from District Four and it wasn't going to be Rio Kamichika.

"I can't believe I'm saying this but I've got no choice. I'm leaving the Blue Squares to you."

Aoba nodded, trying to hide his smile. He looked away indifferently as Ran casually strode to the stage as if it was nothing and smiled at the cameras, watching himself look extremely pleased on the screens. He could just imagine the weaklings from the other districts terrified at having such an opponent.

* * *

**District Five**

Power was District Five's specialty. They provided electric, solar, and nuclear energy for the whole of Panem. However, the citizens of this district didn't seem powerful and energetic at all as the representative started talking in front of the stage.

There was dead silence as everyone silently prayed not to be part of the Quarter Quell.

"Haruna Niekawa!"

A solemn girl with long, black hair and of about 17 years of age went up the stage. She seemed neither sad nor happy. Her face was expressionless. It was as if she didn't even want to bother reacting to her unlucky fate.

When the district representative asked her who she was going to bring along to the arena, her face finally changed to a look of thoughtfulness. Her dark brown eyes scanned the crowd.

"That guy over there," she said emotionlessly.

The random man looked up in surprise. He was blonde, 20 years old, and known to be the friendliest worker at the district's largest power plant. Almost everyone knew him to be the humorous, hard worker that read comic books, watched cartoons, and cracked weird jokes all the time.

He walked to the stage and stood beside Haruna.

"What's your name, young man?"

He smiled. "I'm Walker Yumasaki."

* * *

**District Six**

"I have a big favor to ask of you."

Kyohei Kadota turned around, recognizing the familiar voice behind him. It was an 18 year old woman with long blond hair and kind green eyes. He frowned. They'd met before.

The woman nodded. "I can see that look in your eyes. Yes, we've met before."

"I'm sorry, it seems like I forgot," he said sheepishly. Suddenly, recognition sparked in his eyes. "Oh! You're the girl I saved from those kidnappers a few months ago! Um… Emilia, isn't it?"

"Yeah, that's right," Emilia smiled, pleased that he remembered.

"So, a favor," Kyohei continued suspiciously, "You have a big favor to ask of me."

She looked down at her feet, embarrassed. "Yes. Well, you see, I don't really know anyone older than me in this district and there's a big chance that I'll be reaped since my name's in the jar eleven times for tesserae."

"You're asking if you can call on me to come with you to the arena if ever that happens."

She nodded.

Kyohei grinned. "Of course. I don't mean to brag but I stand a chance in the Games. I don't mind dying in the Quell, anyway. Everyone dies sooner or later. It's just a matter of accepting it."

"You're an angel, you know that?" Emilia sighed in relief. Then she walked off to the ladies' side.

The district representative was a serious man. Everything he said was brief and the name of the next tribute was already being retrieved from the jar. It seemed like an eternity before the paper was finally opened.

"Emilia Davis."

Kyohei quickly looked to his left and found the teary eyes of the woman he spoke to earlier. She tried her best not to cry and walked to the stage. She wasted no time in letting everyone know who she wanted to be with.

"I choose Kyohei Kadota."

He instantly stepped forward and made his way to the spot beside Emilia. He smirked at Togusa's shocked face and calmly looked at the screens, portraying him as a cold and solemn man.

"Everyone, these are the tributes of District Six."

* * *

**District Seven**

The people of District Seven specialized in using trees for lumber and paper. Every year, they'd pray for a strong woodcutter to be reaped for the Hunger Games so that they'd have a chance to win and get the prize.

This year, they all knew who to root for. The parents all knew what to tell their nervous children.

"Son, you have to call on that Shizuo!"

"Yeah, if you don't pick him, our district won't have a winner- again."

"Shizuo Heiwajima has to be a tribute! He'd definitely win!"

"Have you seen that brute rip off those trees?"

"If you get reaped, Heiwajima better be the name you choose."

The crowd was buzzing with whispers and mumbles. Suddenly, the district representative appeared onstage and raised a hand to stop the noise. It took a few minutes for everyone to calm down.

Children were crossing their fingers. The name was drawn; the piece of paper was unfolded.

"Mikage Sharaku."

An 18 year old woman with short black hair standing between her two older brothers bit her lip. The two brothers muttered a few words to her and pushed her to go to the stage. People were softly saying the name of the strongest man in possibly all of Panem. She went up and didn't wait for the representative to ask her.

"I call on Shizuo Heiwajima."

There was a collective sigh of relief. There was a possibility that District Seven was going to win this year with that monstrous man joining the Hunger Games. Everyone started looking around them, waiting for him to appear.

Then, the tall, 24 year old, blond man wearing a bartender outfit stepped forward from the back. "Me? Finally?" his low voice rang out. "You've all been waiting for years and finally- on a Quell, of all Games. Heh."

Shizuo walked to the front, casually throwing his cigarette to the side. Everyone parted like the Red Sea. He peered at them behind his blue shades. He stood beside Mikage on the stage, looking even taller doing so, and tried his very best to avoid the eyes of Kasuka, his brother, in the crowd. Looking sad would make him look weak.

The representative didn't know how to react to what had just occurred. "Why, Mr. Shizuo, it really seemed like the whole of District Seven wanted you to come up so badly!"

"Tch."

* * *

**District Eight**

Mika Harima held tightly to her notebook containing the list of names she was probably going to bet on this year. Vorona and Slon from One, Anri from Two, Izaya from Three, Ran from Four, and Shizuo from Seven. She could imagine Anri kill coldly without a single moment of hesitation and Izaya defend his little sister viciously without mercy. Ran might possibly be one of those tributes who liked torture. Shizuo really looked like a victor as well.

"Mika Harima!"

She looked up, wondering who was calling her. Then, she noticed everyone's eyes on her and those eyes scared her- they were filled with pity. Right then and there, she realized that she had just been reaped.

Mika felt like her legs were made of jelly as she stood anxiously next to the district representative. Now she was scanning through a list of names in her mind who could be her fellow tribute and ally in the Games.

"Who will you bring with you, dearie?"

"I… I choose S-Simon Breshnev."

Simon, who was a tall and dark man, walked forward and smiled good-naturedly at the cameras. He didn't seem to mind at all that he was officially part of the Hunger Games. If anything else, he was definitely just another opponent to look out for.

* * *

**District Nine**

"Are you listening, Seiji? You have to bring me along if ever you get reaped."

"Yes, I know, Namie. You've said that thirteen times already since this morning," Seiji Yagiri sighed irritably.

Sometimes, his sister was being way too overprotective. She would ask him if he was alright and do whatever she could to make him happy. Maybe she needed a boyfriend to do this to instead.

Namie smiled encouragingly at her brother before going to the ladies area. Her smile turned into a deep frown as she glanced at the jar of names. It would be a tragedy if Seiji really was going to be called.

The district representative was extremely chatty. She said that she was proud of being the representative of District Nine of all places. She appreciated that they produced and processed grain for all of Panem and said that her favorite food was rice. No one honestly cared.

Soon enough, the piece of paper was already in her hands.

"Seiji Yagiri!"

Namie turned pale. Now it was certain. Both she and her brother were going into the arena together.

Seiji stood calmly next to the representative and eyed his older sister indifferently. His brown hair was slicked back and his eyes pierced her as he made up his mind. "I want Namie Yagiri to come with me to the arena."

She stepped forward and tried not to make her way to her brother too eagerly. She flattened her long black hair and looked at the screens. Everything was already starting to look like a real tragedy.

"These are Seiji and Namie Yagiri, the Tributes of District Nine!"

It would have been silly to expect an applause.

* * *

**District Ten**

The district in charge of livestock was not one known for victors. No one really wanted to be there and they all knew that their tributes might just end up dead in the initial bloodbath anyway. The representative was cheerful but fortunately quick enough to have it all over with.

"Akane Awakusu."

Everyone gasped. The 12 year old daughter of the mayor was a sweet little girl and completely harmless. She always rode around on her little pony and did as much as she could to herd the sheep and cattle with her pet dog. There was no citizen of District Ten that hated her.

Akane went up the stage with hints of tears in her eyes. Even the representative looked a bit sad at seeing such a sweet girl in tears because of the Games.

"Don't cry, little girl. Being a tribute is an honor," she said nicely. Akane was definitely not comforted. People from the Capitol would never understand. "Now, choose someone to come along with you to the arena."

"That guy over there," the girl answered after scanning the crowd.

The random man she pointed out had brown dreadlocks and was wearing a neat suit and glasses. He steeled himself and walked to the stage stiffly. The representative nodded to him. "Your name, dear man?"

"I'm Tom Tanaka."

"Okay then," she replied, "Let's give a round of applause for our tributes!"

No one clapped.

* * *

**District Eleven**

He felt her grip his hand tightly and press herself closely to his side. She was scared. Who wouldn't be, anyway? It was the Hunger Games- no, the Quarter Quell- and everyone knew that the hundredth year of blood and death in the arena meant the deadliest cruelties anyone could ever imagine.

"Saki, don't be scared. There's a near to zero chance that you'll get reaped," Masaomi comforted her, "Besides, you're my girlfriend. I won't ever let that happen."

"My name is in that jar. My name might be picked. It might happen!" Saki whispered back hysterically.

Before he could reply, the district representative made his presence known onstage. "Welcome to the 100th Hunger Games, the fourth Quarter Quell! Are you ready for the Reaping, District Eleven?"

The crowd was not at all ecstatic. Everyone was silent. The representative once again made an effort to liven things up but failed miserably. Obviously, no one had the intention of being happy on this occasion.

"Okay then… The first name!"

The piece of paper was brought out from the jar.

"Saki Mikajima!"

Saki looked down at the ground. Masaomi could see the tears falling to the ground. He was stupid. He made her cry. He comforted her and told her that nothing would happen to her. Something did. This was all his fault.

"I volunteer as tribute!" he yelled. Everyone turned to look at him. The cameras were trained on him, his messy blond hair and his desperate golden yellow eyes. He composed himself and walked towards the stage.

"Masaomi, no! Don't!" Saki screamed behind him. He turned to look at her and smiled, brushing the tears from her cheek and caressing her face. He took every detail in before finally walking away, holding back the tears.

The representative wasn't helping. "Who's that pretty lady you were with, Masaomi?"

He smiled cheerfully. "That was my girlfriend." He turned to the crowd. "Now to choose my fellow tribute. I'm going to bring along…" Scowls were all he could find among the sea of people. "You."

The woman he pointed to wore a black dress and had brown hair covered by a black hat. Her eyes widened like she couldn't believe it was her that Masaomi was referring to. He nodded. She frowned and went up the stage.

"What's your name, now?" The representative asked.

"Erika. Erika Karisawa."

* * *

**District Twelve**

The people of District Twelve hated the Hunger Games. Ever since Katniss Everdeen died in her failure to rebel against the Capitol twenty-four years ago, the military had always been harsh on their district. The third Quarter Quell was cruel enough- it robbed the Districts of their victors, their symbols of hope.

Everyone knew that the fourth Quarter Quell was going to be even worse.

"I'm going to call the name now," announced the district representative. She held the slip of paper between her fingertips and gazed at the crowd of citizens joyfully, as if the Reaping really was a time for celebration.

She finally opened the folded paper. "The tribute is… Mikado Ryuugamine!"

A soft whimper was heard from the guys' area. Everyone turned to look at Mikado, a 15 year old with black hair and dark eyes. He seemed extremely nervous and soft-spoken as he walked forward, his legs shaking. When he reached the stage, he couldn't help but look down at his feet.

"Don't be shy now, Mikado. The ground won't swallow you up no matter how much you want it to!" the woman joked cheerfully. No one laughed. "Now, look for the person you want to bring along with you to the arena."

Mikado scanned the crowd, forgetting his nervousness in the new task at hand. Was there anyone he knew that was strong enough to survive the games but kind enough not to turn down his offer of alliance?

"I choose Celty Sturluson."

Everyone stared at him. Celty was the best coal miner in District Twelve. Despite being mute, she was extremely expressive with her actions and was the kindest soul in all of Panem. She was swift, strong, and hardworking. No one blamed Mikado, though. Anyone would want someone like Celty with them in the arena.

Celty went up the stage calmly. She was a 22 year old who had wavy long red hair and green eyes and she wore her black body suit, which brought out her curves. Not only was she a tough coal miner, she was also very elegant and sexy.

There was honestly not much of a friendship between her and Mikado. They both just knew each other from trading every weekend at the market. She also saved him when he wandered into the woods once.

Celty smiled at him understandingly and nodded as she stood beside him. He couldn't help but look at the screens that showed her being her usual inspiring self and him standing next to her looking like a total coward who didn't stand a chance at all. They shook hands and the representative re-introduced them as the official tributes of District Twelve. There was, of course, no applause.

Before Mikado could continue staring at the crowd, the Peacekeepers brought him away to the back.

* * *

**I really tried to put the right characters into the right districts but idk. Also, this chapter was very looooong and tiring to write. Let me know if you're confused, if you have questions, or if you liked it or something.**

**Btw, the title is The Twisted Games because Durarara was initially described as a story of twisted love and twisted life in the 'normal' city, so I used the twisted and put it together with the games and then yeah.**


	2. Parade, Training, and Assessment

**I can't wait to get to the interviews and the arena already! For now, have a slightly calm chapter first.**

* * *

Chapter Two

The Parade, the Training, and the Assessment

Celty Sturluson was not fond of exquisite costumes and exaggerated alterations of the body. She liked dressing simple and plain, usually in black. This was what she told her stylist, who assured her that she would be in black during the parade.

However, no one told her that she would be on fire.

It was common that every year, the stylists assigned to District Twelve would come up with either synthetic fire or glowing for the costumes of the tributes. This trend started in the 74th Hunger Games, when Katniss and Peeta pulled it off in their parade.

Celty didn't mind, but she could tell that Mikado started shaking the second their chariot started moving. The flames must have frightened him. Fortunately, his shaking wasn't too obvious on the screens.

The only note-worthy tributes that actually had good costumes were those from One, Three, Four, Eight, and Twelve. None of the tributes really wanted to look at each other right in the eye, so Celty did her best to avoid eye contact. She decided to save that for the Games.

The citizens of the Capitol were screaming and cheering as the chariots sped past them. They yelled names of the people they were rooting for. Most of the tributes waved, some of them stared along coldly, while a few went as far as to either laugh or growl at the audience. Whatever happened, the audience would go wild.

President Snow looked as cruel as ever on the balcony of his mansion, towering above the rest of the tributes in their chariots, which finally arrived in the center of the City Circle below. He gave his speech and then the camera zoomed in on each and every one of the tributes before the chariots made one final round down the circle.

Soon enough, they all made it through the doors of the Training Center, which closed behind them, blocking out all the last screams and claps of the Capitol citizens.

Celty couldn't help but feel like they were all just animals prepared for slaughter.

* * *

The training started with the tributes gathering in a circle as Atala, the head trainer, explained the training schedules and the skill stations. Then, they were free to go wherever they wanted.

Mikado only watched as the rest of the tributes sped off towards the stations they liked. He sighed. He wasn't good at anything except for running and hiding. That crossed out camouflage from his list. Okay, maybe he did know a thing or two about plants and he already mastered climbing an old oak tree they had at home. That meant two more skills out of the list.

The only things left for him to try focusing on were combat and weaponry stations. He really was pathetic.

He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to find the blond boy from District Eleven grinning back at him. "You look like you have no idea where to go next. If I were you, I'd try something lethal first."

Mikado tried sounding unfriendly. "W-well, if I were you, I-I'd try training alone."

"Huh. Don't be so uptight. It's just training, anyway. The Games don't start 'til the gong sounds and we're all rushing into the bloodbath at the Cornucopia," he answered cheerfully, "I'm Masaomi Kida, by the way, and unfriendly really doesn't suit you. I'll be throwing some spears over there if you change your mind about being alone. It wouldn't hurt to have an ally in the arena, right?"

"I'm not stupid. The only reason you want me as an ally is because I seem really easy to kill and you'll be willing to backstab me the moment I'm useless or a threat to you," Mikado said coldly.

Masaomi stepped backwards, his hands raised in a sign of surrender. "Whoa, dude. You should revert back to the shy shaking shrimpy you. I like that Mikado better. Besides, I want you as an ally because you're the only person around here who looks as nervous as I feel. That's all, honestly!"

He turned and walked off towards the spear station. Mikado scowled. Masaomi wanted him as an ally because he wasn't trying to hide the nervousness that he felt. Because he was being honest with how he felt. Was that going to get him anywhere? Usually, the strong guys who hid the tears were the ones who became victors in the Games, right? Definitely not shy shaking shrimps like him.

He decided to go over to the swords and learn the basics. The trainer stared at him as he shakily got one from the rack and held it uneasily in his hand. It took a long while for him to even get a hang of it. It didn't help at all that while the trainer was getting frustrated teaching him all the moves, the girl his age from District Two was already cutting dummies in half behind them.

When the trainer finally let him use the dummies alone, Mikado found himself next to the girl.

"Hi," he said uncertainly as he swung his sword around with much difficulty.

"Hello." She didn't even turn to look at him as she danced around, hitting imaginary opponents. Her eyes glinted from behind her round glasses and her short black hair swayed, her quick movements portraying complete grace, control, and ferocity. Mikado wondered how terribly beautiful she'd look using her sword _with_ opponents.

He decided to step it up by a notch. "I'm Mikado Ryuugamine, from District Twelve. You are…?"

She seemed to frown. "Anri Sonohara. District Two. You should focus. Gripping the hilt too tightly makes your movements restrained and less free-flowing. The angles you hit the dummy from are too rough and your arm shouldn't be so stiff." She turned and severed her dummy's head neatly at the right moment.

Mikado was taken aback. "Oh. I guess you can help me, then?"

Finally, Anri stopped. She peered at him with her scarlet red eyes. A blush was evident on her cheeks and she actually looked a bit flustered. "I, um, don't know. I'm not good at teaching, let alone even talking to people."

"Then what was all that stuff you were saying to me a while ago?" he exclaimed, surprised.

"I feel like I'm in a different world when I use swords," she explained, shrugging, "Maybe you should train alone."

He sighed. "Oh. Well… I wasn't really getting the hang of this at all. Perhaps I should try my luck with a bow and arrow." He turned, put the sword back on the rack, and dejectedly walked towards the archery station.

Just when he was about to grab a simple-looking bow and arrow to start with, he felt someone's hand grasp his shoulder tightly and turn him around. He faced the ecstatic face of Masaomi Kida.

"I saw you try to score points with that Anri girl from District Two, man!" Masaomi said, a huge, amused smile on his face. "Buuuurrnn… It looked like she turned you down after you started talking to her. Seriously, what did you say? I've never tried flirting with swords before!"

Mikado was extremely irritated. "You again! Didn't I tell you that I didn't want to make friends here yet? And besides, why are you talking like such a ladiesman? It was quite clear in the Reaping that you had a girlfriend back home in Eleven."

"Don't be so scathing," he replied dryly, "I was just kidding around. You should know that I like doing that."

"Okay. Just go somewhere else. I really want to be alone. I feel like every conversation I try to make turns out like a total failure. Nothing even lasts five minutes. I bet I won't even last five minutes in the arena," he answered sadly, choosing a smaller bow and arrow to fit his size. He twanged the bow and felt it vibrate from his fingertips to his whole hand.

Masaomi smiled. "Hey, if it comforts you somewhat, I'm willing to converse with you until we actually reach five minutes. And I'll back your ass up in the arena for five minutes too. How does that deal sound? I'm going to be less annoying now; I promise!"

Mikado pretended to stab him with the arrow and laughed for the first time since the Reaping.

* * *

Celty started with the snares, deciding to first try something she knew next to nothing about. The trainer seemed to be pleased as she continued working on intricate knots and complicated traps for an hour before leaving.

Before Celty could move on the next station, she paused first to watch the other tributes train. Mikado was trying his best with a bow and arrow at the archery station and seemed to have managed the basics with Masaomi from District Eleven. Anri from District Two was cornering the trainer from the swords station with ease, as if she had already started handling swords since birth. Ran from District Four was making a huge show out of swinging around a mace. Shizuo from District Seven looked completely frightening as he lifted weights and tossed them around like pillows. He was definitely a threat.

The Orihara siblings from District Three were busy throwing knives. The older brother was teaching the younger sister how to aim properly at the target when he caught Celty watching him. They stared at each other for a few moments before he mysteriously smirked, his crimson red eyes shifting back to his sister. Celty decided she didn't like the older Orihara. There was something fishy about him.

Suddenly, there was a loud noise as the trainer in the hand-to-hand combat station was thrown back by the huge black man named Simon from District Eight. Everyone paused to look at them and then resumed their own training. Walker from District Five and Erika from District Eleven seemed to have become friends, laughing over at the camouflage station. Celty sighed, wondering why they would even bother making friends at this point. They were all going to kill each other anyway.

She wandered towards the edible plants station, which she earlier overlooked. The man from District Two was at the table, concentrating on the plants. Then, to her surprise, he separated the plants in two piles- edible and inedible- in less than ten seconds. The trainer was dumbstruck. The man neatly put it all back in place.

Celty tapped the man's shoulder and typed at her tab. [Excuse me but how did you do that?]

He turned. The dark eyes behind his glasses showed surprise. "I didn't know I'd catch someone else's attention. No one seems to go here to the edible plants station much. Well, I'm a doctor, you see. That's why I know all that."

[A doctor?] She replied, [And you're in the Hunger Games!]

"Yes, it makes you relieved that I can help you out or something, since I have an extensive knowledge of treating wounds and healing sicknesses, right? Sorta useful in the arena," he answered, winking at her flirtatiously. He held out his hand. "I'm Shinra Kishitani, by the way. I'm not surprised you overlooked me; no one expects a doctor to be a threat in the Games."

Celty smiled back, shaking his hand. [Nice to meet you, Shinra. I'm-] He suddenly grabbed her hand.

"Don't even bother introducing yourself. You're Celty Sturluson. I took note of you when I re-watched the reaping. There aren't many redheads in my district, you know. Want to be allies?" he said earnestly.

[No, I don't know,] she said, rolling her eyes. He was officially flirting with her. [Anyway, can you teach me a thing or two about those plants? I don't want to die in the arena because of poisonous berries or something.]

Shinra laughed. "Yes, I can imagine you're the type who'd want to die fighting. And don't worry about the instructor; he's admitted that even I could beat him in determining what's venomous among these."

Later, Celty completely didn't realize that she had spent an hour learning all the basic poisonous thorns and colors and fragrances of plants from Shinra. They were actually enjoying their time together. Just when they were ripping apart a large purple leaf, Celty stopped and turned away.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Shinra asked, concerned.

[I should be spending more time learning how to do hand-to-hand combat or use a sword,] she replied, trying to look as cold as she could, [I'm afraid I'm wasting too much of my time here.]

Shinra looked disappointed. "Oh."

Celty was already walking a few meters away when he called her back. "Celty! There's really nothing wrong with making friends. I know it's not me or the plants. You're scared of becoming closer to me and then being forced to kill me in the arena. It doesn't matter. You don't have to train alone. We were actually having fun and-"

[Caring is not an advantage. Good luck training, Shinra.]

She put her tab in her pocket, continued walking, and didn't look back.

* * *

Shizuo Heiwajima ignored all the tributes and stations around him, focusing on the only things that mattered right now- the weights. He threw and tossed them around like they were pillows, taking out his anger and frustration on the poor inanimate objects.

Why the fuck was he born a monster? Why the hell did the Capitol have to be such a scheming bastard? The Hunger Games, the Quarter Quell, everyone was just so damn stupid! It was all violence and violence never mattered. It was something humans didn't need in their lives but why was it so persistent on interfering? Couldn't anyone see that killing and dying was something people hated? Why not stop it?

Yes, he himself even entered the Games to be part of the violence that he hated so much. Life was such an ironic bastard. It was his fate; his destiny- being born a monster was bound to get him to a place like this.

Shizuo's internal monologue only ended when he actually felt someone stare at him from behind. He didn't know how he could have felt it; he just did. There was something different about the stare, though. The other tributes looked but not stared the way this guy did. He turned, extremely aggravated, to find the man from District Three.

"What are you looking at?" he growled, pissed off just by looking at him.

The man laughed. "Nothing. Just continue. I like how you blindly toss around those weights as if there's nothing else in the world. I've never seen anyone do something like that. It's amusing, to say the least."

"Are you making fun of me?"

"Nope. Just telling you how interesting you are," the black-haired man replied nonchalantly. "I'm Izaya Orihara, by the way." He glanced back at his little sister, who was tying knots at the station nearby.

Shizuo nodded suspiciously. "Shizuo Heiwajima. Now fuck off before I throw something at you, you flea."

Izaya bended over and threw his head back in laughter. "Seriously? Flea? You act like such a monster! That's what makes you so different from everyone else around here. It's so intriguing! No wonder I can't stop watching you."

The blond lifted a weight and threw it in his direction, which Izaya easily dodged, smirking. He then whipped out a knife from his pocket and threw it to Shizuo, who caught it with his hand and tossed it back furiously. Suddenly, before the two could make any more moves, Simon ran towards them and held his hands up as a sign of peace. He eyed them both and took his place between them for the fight to stop, shaking his head.

"No fight!" he said gently. "Fighting before Games is bad."

Just then, Atala, the head trainer, walked angrily to them. "Tributes are not allowed to fight before entering the arena! This is a warning. Do that again and you'll both be disqualified!"

There was a long silence as the rest of the tributes watched Shizuo and Izaya facing each other in obvious combat, Simon in between them. The Gamemakers seemed to have stopped talking amongst themselves and watched them from above their balcony as well, interested. They had never seen such intense fury between two contestants as early as training before.

Shizuo and Izaya glared at each other for a few seconds, golden eyes meeting crimson in an exchange of pure hatred before they parted ways. Shizuo finally went to another station, the hand-to-hand combat station, where the trainer seemed to be shaking. Izaya decided to bring Kururi to the spear station and teach her some moves.

* * *

"Not cool, Iza-nii," said Kururi as Izaya grabbed her arm and led her as far away from the brute as possible.

He grinned, took a spear, and handed it to his sister. "I'm not stupid. Of course I was going to walk away after throwing that single knife. It was just fun provoking him. That protozoan was actually worth my time."

Kururi poked his arm with the spear. "No more fights."

Izaya frowned, rubbing the spot she poked. "Tch. You have no faith in me. I'll never let myself be disqualified. With all these interesting humans around me and all the fun there would be in the arena because of them! I can't wait until I get to know each and every one of them in the interviews. Then, I can use what I learn to my advantage when the Games start- oh so exciting! Ah, yes, and I have to prevent you from being killed, of course."

"You… Don't forget!" she yelled at him, stomping at his foot.

At least he only had to deal with one twin.

* * *

Masaomi Kida sat on the couch in between Erika and his mentor. They were all anxiously awaiting the television program to start so they could see their scores in the Gamemakers' assessments of the private training sessions.

Erika was going on and on about the Walker dude from District Five and how funny he was since he could recite lines from all the cartoons and sitcoms she watched and liked. Masaomi knew that the two were instant friends since training. However, the only person he could think about now was Saki, who was probably worrying about him back home.

He remembered the time he was given to interact with her before leaving the district. He remembered turning over leadership of the Yellow Scarves to her and embracing her one last time before the Peacekeepers led her out of his room. His final memory of her was when she gave him his favorite yellow scarf as a token.

Fortunately, they didn't take it from him when he reached the Capitol. The Yellow Scarves was a rebellion gang that started in District Eleven. Back home, a yellow scarf meant you didn't approve of the Capitol. In the Capitol itself, it was probably just a plain scarf in a shade of yellow.

The only reason Masaomi was nervous about it was because he was secretly the leader of the Yellow Scarves. Ever since the failed rebellion he led last year, the Yellow Scarves had been discreet in their actions so as not to have District Eleven in danger of being annihilated. That was the threat President Snow gave to them. Masaomi took it seriously and told all the members of his rebellion gang to stop blatantly defying the Capitol. It was a good thing no one betrayed him or the Peacekeepers would have been able to trace leadership back to him.

Now, he was sure that his death in the arena would spark immediate rebellion from the Yellow Scarves and he knew that the only way to prevent this was to have Saki control them. She was his girlfriend; he knew she would never disappoint him. Now all he had to do was to not disappoint her by surviving at least until the top ten.

Erika squealed. The television screen showed that both tributes from District One received scores of nine. Anri received an eleven, possibly because she used her sword. Shinra managed to scrape up an eight. Kururi got a seven while Izaya hit a record-breaking twelve. Ran received an eleven. Walker got a seven. Kyohei surprised everyone with an eight; probably his strategy was to lay low during training. Shizuo, of course, managed a big fat twelve. Simon got an eleven. Seiji and Namie each received an eight. Little Akane got seven.

It was then District Eleven's turn. Erika sighed in relief when she scraped up a seven.

Finally, it was the moment of truth. Masaomi knew he had absolutely no chance of getting a twelve like Izaya and Shizuo or even beating the hot girl Anri's ten. Even a seven would be good enough for him, just not a three or anything worse than that. Besides, the assessment was a huge factor in getting sponsors.

And the screen flashed the number nine.

"What did you do in there, Masaomi?" Erika exclaimed. "My camouflage got a seven and you got a damn nine!"

He grinned. "I didn't do much. I just snared a dummy and cut its body parts one by one with a dagger."

"They must have liked your creativity with the snare and your viciousness with the dummy," their mentor interrupted, "Now let's see the scores of the tributes from District Twelve. I've marked the woman off as a threat."

Celty Sturluson got a twelve. Mikado Ryuugamine shocked everyone with a nine.

Masaomi stared. "Well the guy seemed like someone eligible for a three."

"Don't be mean, Masaomi," said Erika, laughing, "Maybe his strategy was like Kyohei's- to lay low during training."

"He did more than lay low. He managed to look like a complete stiff coward in the Reaping, the Parade, and the Training. Maybe he's won an award for acting back in his district!" he answered, still shocked. Deep inside, though, he wasn't really surprised. Mikado had a seriously dark side to him at times when they talked. He honestly did stand a chance.

He had a feeling that they could actually become a good team of allies in the arena.

"Well, we shouldn't concentrate on that right now. Three tributes got twelves- Shizuo, Izaya, and Celty! That's breaking Hunger Games history. We have to watch out for them," Erika said, biting her lip.

Masaomi nodded. "Yup. Those three- plus that Simon dude and Ran- are people we definitely shouldn't piss off."

* * *

**I snuck in a quote from a TV show in there. Whoever finds the quote and correctly names the show it came from shall get the privilege to decide a bit of the story for me. *wink wink***

**Anyway, I hope the character portrayal was okay. I was also wondering if I should really make Celty mute or not, but I decided to go ahead. There's a good reason for that, anyway, which will be revealed next chapter (INTERVIEWS!).**

**The fight between Shizuo and Izaya was quite enjoyable to write! I wanted to go on and on and on, but I had to remind myself that they were still in training, not yet in the arena. Haha. Btw, do you guys want yaoi in this story…?**

**Reviews? :)**


	3. The Interviews

**Okay, yaoi it is, then! I have lots of arena scenes in mind for Shizu-chan and Iza-kun. ;)**

**To compensate for the three-week wait, here's a long chapter all about the interviews. I had fun with this lol.**

* * *

Chapter Three

The Interviews

Shinra Kishitani looked down at his interview attire. He was wearing a white suit coat over a black polo and black slacks and his hair was actually tied in a sophisticated ponytail. He adjusted his glasses and looked around him. Most of the tributes were minding their own business, probably going over what their mentors told them. Others seemed plain nervous.

"Hi there," a voice said from behind him.

Shinra turned. "Oh hello. Izaya, isn't it?"

"Yes," Izaya answered, his crimson eyes glinting mischievously in the light. He was wearing a black coat with fur and matching black pants, looking absolutely devious in his outfit. "It's amazing how we all look dazzling. I honestly can't wait until the interviews start. It would be great to get to know everyone. I'm an interpersonally skilled extrovert, you see."

"Ah. Well, that's good to know," he said offhandedly, looking for a certain redhead.

"I heard that you're a doctor," the black-haired man continued. "And I noticed that you like Celty."

Now he had his full attention. "H-how did you know? I never-"

"Yes, that's true; we never talked before. I just like finding out about people. It was nice talking!" He walked off.

Shinra frowned, watching Izaya move on to talk to other people. He decided that he was a strange man. How the hell did he know about him being a doctor and liking Celty? And why would he socialize with his opponents so blatantly and cheerfully just like that? Right before the interviews, even!

"Well that's a messed up strategy," a voice said beside him.

He turned to find Shizuo Heiwajima smoking a cigarette and wearing a black tuxedo, watching Izaya with a look that could only pass off as extreme loathing. "I managed to eavesdrop on his mentor warning him and his little sister to keep to themselves and act naturally during the interviews. I really don't call _that _keeping to yourself. He's insane! The only things I like about him are his sweet sister and the fact that I can kill him in the arena."

The doctor smiled. "I have a question to ask you, Shizuo. How did you get that super strength? You were tossing around weights like they were fucking pillows during training! I've never encountered such strength in all my life! Are there side effects to using too much, or…?"

"Super strength?" Shizuo repeated. He scoffed, "Last time I checked, you weren't the interviewer."

Shinra laughed. "No, I'm not the interviewer, but I _am_ a doctor."

Before they could exchange a few more words, they were all being lined up to take the stage. The order was by district, with the female always preceding the male. When they were all in order and they all fixed themselves one last time, the show started.

Parading onstage itself took everyone's breath away. The City Circle was packed with people from all over the Capitol. Stylists, mentors, and district representatives sat in front. The Gamemakers and other important figures sat on elevated seats or on the balcony. The cameramen turned on their cameras as all the tributes took their seats in a big arc behind the two main couches in the middle of the stage.

Every citizen of Panem was tuning into the program.

Caesar Flickerman with his midnight blue suit and bright yellow-dyed hair appeared onstage. He started by making a few jokes. The audience went wild. Soon enough, he got down to business.

Shinra uneasily stared down at the crowd as the girl from District One, Vorona, walked over to take her seat in the middle next to Caesar Flickerman. The interviews had officially started.

* * *

The tributes were called, one by one, to spend their three minutes with Caesar. It was a pressuring time for them all, since those three minutes could determine whether they would get any sponsors or not. Everyone did their best to appeal to the crowd by working up their best sides, with the help of Caesar, who would do his best to make each and every tribute shine.

Izaya Orihara didn't really think much about his turn. He just wanted to focus on the others.

Both Vorona and Slon were passionate. They mostly talked about training together in their childhoods and dreaming of winning the Games. Izaya decided not to mind them since they were just Careers who would most likely keep to themselves. They didn't seem like the types who would go out of their way to kill.

Anri was quiet. True enough, she was quite pretty in her high-cut red dress, which brought out her voluptuous figure. However, the most surprising thing about her was that she was a _Career_.

"Where did that ten come from, Anri? To be honest, no one knew what to expect from you. You confidently came up the stage in the Reaping, and you acted indifferent during the Parade!" Caesar started.

She decided not to lie. "I just want to go into the arena already and show everyone what I can do. My score was just a product of my training. What people watch in the Games itself is the product of the tributes' panic and desperation. It's different." Izaya noticed that she had evaded the question regarding her score.

"You're actually quite friendly and softspoken, you know. That can serve as an advantage in the Games if used correctly," Caesar answered, noticing it as well, "But surely, you have to at least give us a clue about what you did in the assessment! That's the more important part."

Anri nodded, smiling gently at the crowd. "Well, I can handle swords pretty well. I've trained mostly with swords since I was a child and I'm determined to win with those as my main weapons in the arena."

"What will you do if you win, then?"

"I don't really know. I'll gain fame and glory, plus the prize for my district and a place in the Victors' Village, but I really don't know," she replied softly, shrugging. "I'll have a quiet lifestyle and relax for a bit."

Caesar grinned. "Ah. You know, Anri, most victors either spend their time relaxing alone or settling down with someone they love. Isn't there such a person?"

"Oh, I'm not very sociable. You really have to talk to me to get to know me and I keep to myself. There's no one like that in my life, really," she said, a slight blush creeping up her cheeks. She even looked cute.

The buzzer sounded and everyone clapped. Anri was a promising tribute.

Next came Shinra, who was very outgoing. Caesar didn't have a hard time talking to him at all.

"Tell us, Shinra, about your strengths. What can possibly help you in the arena?"

He smiled, leaning back comfortably in his seat. "Well, since I'm a doctor, I've already mastered determining edible plants and curing wounds, cuts, and infections. I will most likely survive with my skills, unless someone kills me."

Caesar nodded. "True. Your profession is an obvious advantage. Speaking of which, what was life like in District Two? It's rare, you see, that we get a tribute from there that isn't a Career. How different is it from the Capitol?"

"It's a lot busier there," Shinra said, adjusting his glasses, "There's the work of masonry and then, of course, the military training for Peacekeepers, since they all come from District Two. Actually, most of my patients back home are those who get injured training or working under duty. Here in the Capitol, everything seems easy and really fancy."

"That _is _a huge difference, huh," Caesar commented, "Now, is there anyone back home whom you miss?"

Shinra shook his head. "No, not much. My mother died when I was born and my father's mostly busy with his experimental work, too. Well, there are the occasional neighbors and patients."

"How about love interests? Surely, a smart and good-looking man like you…"

He laughed. "Well, I'm actually eyeing someone right now." The audience seemed to be all ears. "She's a tribute and I admire her for her kindness and ferocity. I really do hope we can become allies in the arena."

Caesar eagerly leaned closer. "Who is it? Can't you tell us?"

"No, I'd rather not. She wouldn't take kindly to that. Watch out, though; we'll most probably be together in the arena during the Games," he answered, smiling mysteriously. Izaya discreetly turned to look at Celty, who seemed slightly flustered but managed to remain emotionless enough.

The buzzer rang out and it was time to move on to the next tribute. Shinra didn't do too badly.

It was Kururi's turn. She glanced at Izaya nervously before sitting next to Caesar. Izaya sat up straight, realizing that Kururi's interview could actually get him an angle as well. He nodded to her encouragingly. She stepped up and wowed the audience with her small smile as she walked and sat down gracefully in her simple pink dress. A brief image of her and the much more outgoing Mairu wearing the same outfits and sticking together all the time flashed in Izaya's mind.

Caesar smiled kindly. "You received a score of seven! That wasn't so bad. How did you do it?"

Kururi glanced back at her brother. "Um… It was all thanks to Iza-nii. He helped me train."

The cameras focused on Izaya, who merely grinned and acted as if it was just nothing. Caesar jumped on this immediately. "Yes, we can see that he's a good brother. This brings us to your twin sister-"

"Mairu," she said shyly.

"Yes. It was her name that was originally reaped and you bravely volunteered for her! Then, it was quite clear on the cameras, that your brother wanted you to call on him so he could protect you in the arena. Is that right?"

"I love my sister. We're twins and we're always together. I would never have let her come here and risk her life, so I volunteered," she answered softly, "I'm glad that Iza-nii is here too or else I wouldn't be able to cope. Everything is just so confusing right now; I can't believe I'm even here…"

Caesar nods. "We all sympathize with you, Kururi. It must be very hard to get separated with a twin. What did she say to you before you left District Three?"

"She told me… that she'd miss me. And that she wished her name was never reaped so that the three of us could just be living normally at home. I'm sure she's crying right now," she replied tremulously. Then, she looked right at the cameras as if talking to Mairu herself. "I want her to know that I love her, and I'm sure Iza-nii does too."

The crowd instantly fell for this, their hearts won over by the pure honesty and pain that was expressed. Caesar patted Kururi on the shoulder comfortingly. "I'm sure you do, and I'm sure she's hoping to see you again in person. Now, if you had a chance at winning the Games, what skills or qualities do you think can save you?"

At this, Kururi smiled. "I have good aim. I'm small, so I'm fast. I also have Iza-nii."

Izaya knew at once that his little sister unknowingly made the audience support him. She didn't speak much back at home, since Mairu usually did all the talking, but it seemed as if she had decided to talk more before possibly dying in the arena.

The buzzer sounded and her interview ended, causing Caesar to call Izaya at once to pick up where she left off. He stood up, watching himself on the screens.

To be honest, he thought the long black coat with fur made him look absolutely dashing.

"Izaya Orihara! You're a mystery to everyone. You acted like the ideal brother to your sisters in the Reaping and then coldly presented yourself in the Parade!" Caesar said, "What can you tell us?"

"Honestly, my little sisters were just nuisances to me back at home and I didn't give a care about them. It's always been like that ever since our parents died," Izaya started, looking down at his feet as an act of embarrassment, "But then after the Reaping, I realized that it was a true blessing that I even had sisters like them at all."

"That's a huge and heart-warming change of opinion!"

He suddenly remembered a flashback from the Reaping. "I had this scary vision of Kururi screaming insanities in a white room and maybe Mairu sitting in a corner for the rest of her life. One twin can't live without the other. This whole Quell thing just ruins it and… well…"

He looked at Kururi with pretend sorrow, who gazed back at him with a teary look still in her eyes. He smiled at her affectionately for effect. The crowd, right then and there, gave their hearts to the Orihara siblings. Izaya tried not to do an evil laugh of success. Acting was _so _easy.

"Of course," came the sympathetic answer, "That sounds terrible. Now, with your dashing looks and winning personality, there has to be a girl at home or something!" The audience howled. Romance was always a popular factor in the Hunger Games, ever since Katniss and Peeta.

"A girl? No way. But girls… Well, I'm guilty." This was followed by a cocky grin. The crowd went wild.

"Ah, I can see that we have a playboy here! With each and every citizen of Panem tuning in to your every word, what can you say about your brilliant score of twelve?"

He simply laughed, smiling confidently. "Oh, that. I just impressed the Gamemakers with my clever use of knives. They weren't expecting it either, but what can I say? I'm agile, violent, and extremely smart."

"Wow! Any more details?" The audience was hanging on to every single word.

"No, I can't," Izaya said, smirking, "It's completely confidential. I told you what I could."

Caesar shook his head. "I really can't imagine how amazing you'll be in the arena! Kururi is lucky to have you with her. What do you think should the other tributes watch out for?"

Izaya glanced at the other twenty-two. Most of them looked back at him coldly. "Well, they should never underestimate me. I love learning about people and their, hmm… _perks. _If they let their guard down, I'll take the opportunity, use what I know about them, and they might just find a knife in their throat. No one ever knows what I'm planning next. It's going to take real brains to outsmart me, so I might just win the Games."

The buzzer went off and the crowd clearly wanted to hear more. Izaya flashed a smile at the audience. Everyone was completely manipulated by his actions and words. "Now, _that _is really a tribute you guys should be looking out for in the arena." Caesar shook hands with him and clapped. "Izaya Orihara, everyone!" He bowed with a flourish and calmly sat back down beside his sister. The crowd couldn't calm down.

Kururi glared at him. "So much sugar-coating," she muttered, rolling her eyes. He simply frowned and turned away from her. She had no idea how important the sugar-coating was to their survival in the arena.

Rio Kamichika came next. She obviously wasn't much, but her fellow District Four tribute, Ran Izumii, was the typical Career- brutal and bloodthirsty. He expressed his one-hundred percent certainty of winning the games and talked about his talent with the mace. Izaya scowled.

It was then District Five's turn. Haruna Niekawa was mostly quiet. Izaya had a feeling that she was going to be one of the tributes who would die on the first day. After her was Walker Yumasaki, who was, hands down, the most humorous tribute, easily bantering with Caesar Flickerman during his turn. He seemed smart enough to last a few days in the arena.

Emilia Davis was a cheerful girl who was optimistic about lasting in the Games. Kyohei Kadota was the silent strong type and he was slightly secretive about his skills. Izaya was willing to bet that Kyohei knew and was capable of more than he was letting on.

Then, it was time for the tributes from District Seven to be interviewed. Mikage Sharaku was sly and seductive, possibly someone who could last long in the arena, but Izaya was looking forward to someone else.

Shizuo Heiwajima, in his uncharacteristically neat tuxedo, seemed to be taking a casual approach as he sat down lazily on his chair. His blond hair was kept messy for a bold effect and his golden eyes were focused on Caesar, who could tell that Shizuo was one of the popular tributes that could easily please the crowd.

"You got a twelve, Shizuo. Tell us more about it."

The tall man shifted uneasily in his seat. "Well, I guess the Gamemakers liked my temper and my strength. It's nothing, really. I'm surprised I got a perfect score- not that I'm saying _Orihara_ really deserved his and I didn't, because I was expecting something lower from him."

The audience felt the atmosphere turn into tense rivalry as the cameras shifted to Izaya's face to show his reaction. He simply smirked, daring Shizuo to lose his temper in front of everyone.

Caesar seemed to sense the danger and stepped it down by a notch. "You both have a rivalry?"

Shizuo scowled. "Tch. He's a snarky and conceited know-it-all. We had a little argument during training once and I can tell he won't last if ever he comes face to face with me in the arena."

Izaya's smirk widened. The two glared at each other before Caesar took the reins again. "I'm sure that everyone will be looking forward to this promising showdown between two of our top-scoring tributes, right?"

The crowd cheered. Izaya knew at once that this banter with Shizuo gave more depth to his angle- he was willing to fight and kill to prove his intelligence. So be it. He turned back to the interview.

"Now give us more details about yourself. What do you mean by your strength?" Caesar asked innocently.

"I've always been physically strong ever since I was a kid and I didn't talk to anyone much except for when they pissed me off," Shizuo replied coolly, "Usually, I'd use my strength back home to defend my brother."

Caesar immediately pounced on this. "Your brother? There wasn't a brother in the Reaping!"

"Well, we're not exactly close. His name's Kasuka and he's younger than me," he answered, "I saw him in the crowd back then at the Reaping and after. There was a look in his eyes that told me I could win. And I will win."

The audience went wild. This tall, serious man with the messy blond hair and strong determination appealed to them. He could actually win the Quell. Izaya frowned. This opponent was going to be hard to beat.

"It's refreshing to see such determination! Now tell us why you're going to win the Quarter Quell."

Shizuo looked genuinely serious. "I'm going to win because I hate violence. I'll be a living reminder to everyone that the Hunger Games isn't just a game. If you want to watch it or be part of it, at least be serious about it. It puts lives at stake and it's violent. That's all I'm going to say."

Izaya felt his jaw drop and quickly closed it. Was this guy insane? Saying things like that could be counted as an act of treason against the Capitol! But then again, he kept it at a minimum and used the concept of violence to subtly warn people about the Games. Perhaps the brute had more depth than he was letting on.

"That's quite expressive of you, Shizuo," said Caesar cautiously. "We'll keep in mind that whatever the Capitol has in store for Panem, such as the Hunger Games, will be taken seriously. We truly appreciate it."

Shizuo nodded, realizing that Caesar had rephrased his bold statement into something less expressive. He added, realizing that his time was almost up, "My score of twelve wasn't for nothing and I'm not afraid to hurt or kill those who are willing to do the same to me." He gave an extra glance towards Izaya's direction.

The buzzer went off. The audience cheered and clapped, wanting more of the physical and emotional strength that this bold and noble blond had just showed them. It took a while for them to calm down before the interviews could proceed normally again. Izaya made it a point to glare at Shizuo, hating the pure passion he had expressed in the interview. Shizuo glared back as he took his seat.

It was time for District Eight. The female tribute, Mika Harima, was just one of those useless tributes who would most probably die on the first day. However, Simon Breshnev seemed to be interesting, to say the least. He was extremely tall and extremely strong like Shizuo. The similarities stopped there. Simon had dark skin and was completely down-to-earth and friendly. Still, Izaya could tell at once that they were both a match when it came to physical strength if they were ever going to fight in the arena.

The next tributes from District Nine were siblings, just like Izaya and Kururi. This time, it was an older sister and a younger brother- Namie and Seiji Yagiri. Unlike Izaya, Namie deeply expressed her will to protect her little brother even to the last breath. It was creepy, even bordering on obsessive. Seiji was quiet and acted indifferent to his sister's feelings. Perhaps they would last in the Games if they only stuck together.

District Ten was a bit pitiful. The female tribute, Akane Awakusu, was the youngest among all of them at the age of twelve years old. Her fellow tribute was a guy in dreadlocks and glasses named Tom Tanaka and he looked like he absolutely did not want to be in the Games. Izaya wasn't going to expect any worthy opponents from there.

The tributes from District Eleven were interesting. Erika Karisawa was creative and clever, and she openly told everyone that she already knew who she wanted to be allies with. Izaya was willing to bet that it was Walker from District Five. The male tribute, however, was a complicated character.

"Masaomi Kida!" Caesar said cheerfully, "What can you tell us about the nine you received for your training?"

Masaomi grinned. "I was pretty vicious. The poor target dummy I killed was screaming to be spared, you know. I told him that I couldn't do that and that he was my next target. The Gamemakers liked the dummy too, I guess, which is why they didn't give me something higher."

The audience laughed. Izaya liked this kid, but he had a feeling that there was hidden depth within him. Caesar continued. "Do you think you stand a chance in the arena with all the excellent tributes we have this year?"

"Of course I do," he answered confidently, flashing a playboy smile at the crowd, "I may look a little skinny but I can handle weapons well, possibly kill well too if I get the chance. Besides," he darkened considerably, "I _have to _stand a chance because I really need to get back home to District Eleven.

Caesar understood right away what he meant. "Your girlfriend, Saki. Tell us more about her."

He nodded eagerly, as if he was completely willing to get all the feelings off his chest. "I love her to death. When her name was called, it was like a bomb dropped and everything around me was exploding. It was like the end of the world for me. I knew right away what to do. I volunteered."

The audience was hanging on to every single word. "She told me that she couldn't survive without me but I told her that she could handle it. I'm not going to go out without a fight, anyway. If possible, I'll even come home."

"Of course you will. Now while you're here, tell us what you like about the Capitol."

Masaomi smiled. Izaya could tell there was something mischievous about that smile. "The Capitol is a really fancy place. It's so different from the fields and plains I see at home. What I like most about it, though, is how you guys change your appearances so easily. You alter your skin, your body, your hair, and it's crazy. I've never seen anything like it back at home. Like you, Caesar- your hair is a lovely color of _yellow._"

Izaya tried not to laugh out loud. He could sense the other tributes beside him try not to laugh as well. Only someone not from the Capitol would understand that Masaomi was making fun of the people from the Capitol, not complementing them. The audience was charmed by his mock sweetness.

Caesar Flickerman was completely unaware. "Why, thanks. I was choosing between green and yellow this year and I flipped a coin. It's a good thing I landed on tails, or else I wouldn't have received your compliment."

The buzzer went off. Masaomi was a hit with the crowd, despite the little stunt he pulled.

Finally, it was District Twelve's turn. By now, everyone was getting a bit bored and tired, but Izaya had a feeling that Celty and Mikado were both going to appeal to the audience.

Celty had to be interviewed with her tab, which was her token from her district. She could type in her replies to show Caesar. The tab was directly connected to the Capitol system. Her typed answer would be shown on the screen by the stage for the audience to see and also on the television screens of the citizens of Panem. Her interview was also extended to five minutes instead of three.

She looked dazzling in her black body suit with sequins that gently glittered and her auburn hair was up in a ponytail. She must have made it a point that she did _not _want to wear a dress.

Caesar seemed ecstatic to interview Celty. "You're the second female ever to receive a perfect training score of twelve, right after Katniss Everdeen! How do you feel about that?"

[I'm not surprised, actually. I have to admit that I do possess skills that are, well, out of this world.] She typed quickly, a bit nervous that her lack of voice would bore the audience. The opposite happened, however, since the crowd eagerly read every single word on the screens.

"Out of this world? What are those skills, exactly?" he replied.

Her fingers hesitated before she typed out her answer. [Aside from handling weapons very easily and being faster and more flexible than any woman my age, I have very advanced senses. I was born mute, but my eyesight, sense of smell, and hearing are quite developed. I can see in the dark, smell things that are far away, and hear up to several miles. That's the reason why I refused to have an operation on my throat for this interview. I'm afraid that if I gain my voice, I might lose the advancement of my other senses.]

Izaya felt himself perk up, intrigued by the hidden talent that was so unheard of.

"That's amazing! It must be a rare occurrence for a person to have that, and an even rarer occurrence for such a person to become a tribute in the Hunger Games," Caesar said, grinning interestedly, "You have such a huge advantage!"

Celty nodded. [Yes, I do. It seems easier to talk, though.]

He answered, "It is. Well, since we now know about your developed senses and easy use of weapons, we're dying to know how you scored the twelve in the assessment."

[It's sad to say that I can't answer completely. The Gamemakers wouldn't like that.] She typed out her reply hesitantly. [My favorite weapon is actually a scythe, because we use that to dig down deeper in the coal mines back in District Twelve, so I chose a weapon close to that. I chose a spear. Then, I used my senses to aid me while showing them what I could do. It's hard to explain without revealing much.]

Caesar shifted in his seat. "I see. Speaking of District Twelve, how about a love interest? An elegant and passionate woman like you must have several suitors willing to court you!" Caesar replied. Izaya immediately looked at Shinra from the corner of his eye. The doctor was looking away.

Celty instantly typed into her tab. [There's no such person. Yes, it's true that I've met many guys who like me but I haven't yet thought about liking someone back.]

"What kind of guy would you want to like back, then?"

[I want him to be kind… smart… and willing to understand a headstrong person like me.]

Caesar nodded. "Of course. I'm sure many young men out there are dying to have you notice them! Let's say you stand a chance in the arena and win the Games. How? What will it take for you?"

She frowned before typing her reply. [Well, I haven't really killed a person and I honestly wouldn't hurt anyone until I actually need to. The Hunger Games requires the tribute to hurt and kill. I'll do whatever I can to help others and then, of course, kill them when the time comes. Besides, with a couple of good weapons and my advanced senses, I'm sure I stand a chance.]

The buzzer rang out, breaking the silence that the crowd surrendered to after Celty's reply. Her passion and compassion had moved them and she was more promising than expected. Izaya decided that she would make a good ally and possibly a good pawn to manipulate. Caesar gratefully shook her hand. "Female tribute of District Twelve, everyone- Celty Sturluson!" The audience cheered.

The final one to be interviewed was Mikado Ryuugamine. He actually managed to stand out in his casual, halfway-buttoned up jacket with matching dark pants. It was obvious that he was nervous. Izaya, however, thought differently of him. He knew that the boy had the capability to win, having seen his dark side while eavesdropping on his conversation with Masaomi during training.

Caesar, at last, found reason to be softer in interviewing. "Hello, Mikado. You got a ten in your assessment. To be honest, it shocked me and everyone else. What did you do that made the Gamemakers give you that score?"

"I can see it in all your faces. I guess I didn't seem like much in the Reaping and the Parade, huh?" he said softly, smiling to himself. "I d-didn't do much, really. I'm not that strong and I came here not knowing how to use any weapon, but I trained with one. I used it during the assessment and I guess they thought I didn't do too badly."

"That's good for you, then. What else are you good at, though?"

Mikado grinned. "W-well, I'm excellent at keeping to myself and giving a cold shoulder when I feel like it." The audience gave a few laughs. "I'm mostly fast and good at hiding, too. It wouldn't be wise to count me out in the Games. One of the tributes whom I already made friends with said that I do stand a chance."

"We really have to watch out for that, don't we?" Caesar said kindly. "How do you think you'll win, then?"

"I'm more clever and smart than I look. I'll make an alliance and then defend myself as much as I can. It wouldn't hurt to run and hide at times, but I think I already know what to do," he replied, the aura around him darkening. "I may be a coward if it comes to that, but everyone has a little bit of darkness in them. I'll do anything to survive for as long as I could."

Caesar nodded, looking at him carefully. "Well said, Mikado. What will you do after you win? Surely, there must be some people waiting back in District Twelve."

He shook his head. "I'm sure they'll be expecting Celty instead. I'm not even sure if I can win. I just said that I'd try to survive for as long as I could, right? Don't even bother asking me about a love interest, Caesar. I'm the type of person who'd like someone, not be liked."

"Is that so? Tell us who you like, then!"

Mikado scowled, his eyes once more showing that rare darkness. "I don't think she'll like me back even though I tell. She's a tribute too and I've tried talking to her. It didn't turn out too well. She's really nice and pretty. Besides, it would be unwise to try in the Hunger Games, right? It usually leads to tragedy."

"I see. Your time's almost up, now. Anything else you want to say?" Caesar asked. Mikado looked right into the cameras, not a trace of his previous shy shaking shrimpy demeanor showing. He then smirked sardonically, surprising everyone with the shocking change of personality. His hidden self was unshakeable in contrast with his outer shell. Izaya relished the unmistakable chill up his spine.

"The Hunger Games are twisted. And have fun watching the odds being _never_ in our favor."

The buzzer sounded.

* * *

**OMG ARE THEY ALL IN CHARACTER? **

**I'm so concerned about their characterizations so please review and tell me what you think! **


	4. Away to Slaughter

**I rewrote this nine times. Ugh. Also, vote for your favored tributes on the poll I put up at my profile. SAVE YOUR FAVORITE CHARACTER. By the way, starting now, I will feature songs that I listened to while writing/ songs that fit the current chapter- specifically two English songs and one Japanese song ('cause I'm organized like that).**

**Soundtrack: Take Me Away by Globus, I Will Not Bow by Breaking Benjamin, The World by Nightmare.**

* * *

Chapter Four

Away to Slaughter

"_We don't know what to do, Mikado! What if you die in there?"_

"_Only nine of us in this world know that you're secretly the leader of the Dollars. Someone has to replace you while you're gone, and if the inevitable happens, you'll really need a permanent replacement."_

"_It's like you're saying Mikado doesn't stand a chance! He might actually make it back!"_

_I hit the table with my fist in anger, wanting the noise to stop. All of them instantly go silent and stare at me, waiting for me to speak. I can't. I can't bring myself to speak. I'm too scared. I'm too unprepared. The guy on my left soothes me by patting my shoulder. I feel pathetic._

_He gasps as I furiously brush away his hand. I stand up. "Our main problem isn't whether I die or not. Our main problem is controlling the whole gang. I need someone trustworthy to take my place and continue sending secret messages to all members. I need someone to take my place as leader of the Dollars."_

_They all point to the quiet man sitting to my right. I knew it. He rarely speaks and everyone is intimidated by his appearance. He has shoulder-length, black hair and eyes a light shade of gold. He glares at anyone with a look that obviously means "go away". He is, however, the best member for the job. They all know it. I know it. _

_But no one knows his name. _

_Suddenly, he stands. His voice is quiet but firm. Suddenly, it sounds so familiar, like a voice I've heard before. "This leader… Mikado. He will die. He doesn't stand a chance. He will be killed by someone stronger and better than him in the arena. I, as leader, already have a plan: we rise up in rebellion and the Capitol will finally fall."_

_Everyone in the room cheers. I freeze, still standing, awed by the impact Anonymous makes. They all cheer for him and congratulate him on his first plan as leader of the rebellion gang._

_Then, I feel as if I'm being pulled away from them. The table, the chairs, the room, and everyone else grow ever smaller as I find myself being sucked into nothingness behind me. My hand reaches out and I call to them. No one notices. I am pulled even further backwards._

_Anonymous turns and smirks. I feel my eyes widen. He laughs hysterically. Everyone continues cheering him on. They are all but merely specks in my line of vision as I am still pulled back. I cry out in vain._

_Anonymous appears right in front of me, grinning. His face transforms into Caesar Flickerman's. _

"_Do you really think you'll stand a chance in the Games, Mikado? Tell us honestly, now! Tell us!"_

_He then transforms into Anri Sonohara._

"_Perhaps you should train alone. You're not good at anything, anyway."_

_She then transforms into Masaomi Kida. _

"_I like the shy shaking shrimpy you better."_

_I scream._

* * *

Mikado sat up and took deep breaths, drenched in sweat. He looked around him. He was in his room in the Training Center. He was in the Capitol, not in the Dollars Headquarters, not in District Twelve. He checked his watch on the table beside his bed. It was three in the morning.

In just a few hours, he would be transported to the arena and doomed to die. The Hunger Games would officially begin and he would have to grab weapons from the Cornucopia and prevent himself from being killed. He would have to run, find a water source, and make an alliance as fast as possible so he'd actually stand a freaking _chance. _

Then, if he was lucky, the impossible could happen and he'd actually win the Quarter Quell. He'd have a place in the Victors' Village. The Dollars, his very own rebellion gang, which had already spread from his own District Twelve all the way until District Five, would grow larger enough to actually be able to start a rebellion! They'd do what the Yellow Scarves and the Blue Squares had failed to do- overthrow the Capitol.

Mikado blinked. His nightmare was an exact repeat of his inner gang circle's visit to him before he left District Twelve. There were obvious differences, though. In the actual event, they weren't so chaotic. He wasn't so pathetic, unlike in the dream. Anonymous didn't talk at all.

Most of all, Anonymous didn't turn into different people and taunt him.

Besides, Mikado already knew he'd die fast in the Games. He wasn't stupid enough to believe that he'd actually stand a chance in the arena and find a way to survive even past the first day. He already accepted his sure death.

Right?

* * *

Celty did her best not to rub the spot where they injected the tracking device into her arm. Doing anything at all was nerve-wracking, so she decided to stand by the window and look at the view. She had no idea where they were headed, except that there was a spectacular view of grassy fields.

Finally, the windows blacked out, meaning they were almost at the location of the arena. The hovercraft landed and Celty walked back with her stylist to the ladder, which led to a tube underground into the catacombs beneath the arena.

The Launch Room was complete. There was a dining room and a bathroom. She could do anything she wanted while waiting for the dreaded signal to be brought up to the arena. Like in the hovercraft, she found that doing anything at all was just nerve-wracking, so she stood by the circular metal plate to wait.

Suddenly, a pleasant female voice announced that it was time to prepare for launch. Celty turned and smiled at her stylist one last time before walking onto the circular metal plate.

She quickly typed out a short goodbye before the glass cylinder lowered around her. Darkness surrounded her as the metal plate pushed her upwards. Minutes passed. She took a deep breath and waited to be taken away to slaughter, preparing for sunlight.

After a final push, she felt the open air caress her skin and darkness appear right in front of her.

Wait- darkness?

The voice of the announcer, Claudius Templesmith, boomed and echoed around the place.

Wait- echoed?

"Ladies and gentlemen, let the One-hundredth Hunger Games begin!"

* * *

Shizuo Heiwajima stood calmly on his metal plate and spent his sixty seconds taking in his surroundings. All twenty-four tributes were standing in a circle around the Cornucopia, which was abundant with containers of food and water, different kinds of weapons, and lights.

Yes, lights.

The huge, dark cave was dimly lit with lights coming from small lanterns around the Cornucopia. It was an unusual sight. Shizuo stared at a lantern near his own plate and found it strange that the arena was just a fucking _cave._ That was just plain stupid. Well, perhaps it was a network of caves and tunnels, or something bigger.

He looked up. The cave was as large as the City Circle. A house or two could probably fit inside. To his right, the cave extended to a long tunnel, which ended in darkness. To his left, the cave extended until a small opening of boulders and rocks. They were all trapped in unless someone could push off the boulders. Shizuo smirked. That would be easy. He watched the other tributes look around as well, most of them slightly flabbergasted at the unexpected environment and the others unfazed, completely focused on the Cornucopia.

Shizuo immediately found what he wanted- two huge-ass axes glinting brightly from the light of a nearby lantern and the largest backpack of all, probably containing several useful supplies. Getting a club or two would be great, too.

Besides, if anyone got in his way, he could deal with them easily.

His eyes found Izaya Orihara's, and they gazed at each other from across the cave. He scowled as the man smirked at him cockily. The bastard was officially number one in his list of tributes to kill.

Before he knew it, the gong rang out. Shizuo sprinted towards the inner part of the Cornucopia, ignoring the other running tributes in his peripheral vision and looking only at the axes. He grabbed one and was about to lunge in to grab the other when a female hand whipped out of nowhere and beat him to it.

He looked up to find Mikage, his fellow district tribute, who simply saluted him with a smile and ran off, carrying a black backpack. Shizuo cursed and swung the axe over his shoulder as he turned to run towards the opposite direction, near the boulders. He swooped down to get a blue backpack and a few small weapons as he ran.

Sounds of tributes fighting to the death and screams of desperate girls reached his ears. He turned, just for a split second, and saw the bloody and decapitated body of a girl hit the ground. There was the boom of the cannon. Ran Izumii from District Four seemed to be on a killing spree as he handled his mace with bloodlust in his eyes. Anri, who was nearing the side of the cave leading to the dark tunnel, managed to impale someone with a sword. More blood splattered everywhere. The boom of the cannon echoed once more.

Shizuo heaved the boulders one by one, not wasting time. Then, he felt a rock shoved out from the left side and turned to see twelve-year old Akane from District Ten, helping him move the boulders. She smiled shyly at him. "Let's hurry and find a way out of here before someone comes and decides to hurt us!"

He frowned and pushed at one rock, which fell out after some effort. A ray of sunlight entered the cave. He cursed and swung his axe towards the remaining boulders, causing a huge opening to break through the cave wall. More rocks crashed down and dust rose in the air around them. Akane sprinted outside, clearly terrified of the bloodbath within. Shizuo followed, taking one last peek at the Cornucopia before going outside as well.

Sunlight hit his eyes, blinding him for a few moments. Then, he looked around him. The cave was, apparently, inside a mountain, since there was nothing but rocky inclines everywhere and trees scattered here and there. It would be hard to run around without risking falling to the ground below.

They were _on _a fucking mountain.

It would have been stupid to expect a proper view. There were only useless green fields all around the mountain and it was probably just an image the Gamemakers plastered onto the force fields so as not to reveal the true location of the arena.

The cannon boomed again. Akane ran off, a slingshot in her left hand and a tiny bag in the other. Shizuo followed, realizing that this little girl was in the danger of being his ally. What the fuck?

He overtook her and blocked her path. "Why are you here, anyway, little girl?"

She looked up at him, eyes wide. "Because you're strong, of course. My mentor said you'd be a perfect ally. I'll do my best to keep up, though! I don't want to die just yet, so I do want to stay with someone I can rely on."

"You have a twisted sense of judgment," he answered fiercely; "I'm a selfish monstrous bastard."

"No, you're not," she argued.

A spine-chilling scream resounded throughout the whole mountain. They all froze, waiting for the cannon. Soon enough, it boomed. Then, it boomed again. That already meant five casualties in the bloodbath.

Shizuo whispered, "I wonder if there will be more…"

"Was that the sound of a stone hitting the ground?" the girl replied, tilting her head to the side as she observed their surroundings. "I think someone's coming. Let's go; I'm getting scared."

They continued running away from the cave and into the side of the mountain which had more trees than rocks. Shizuo went as fast as he could, occasionally glancing behind at the little girl to make sure she didn't fall over.

Then, everything happened in a flash. Two of the tributes- both Careers from District One- appeared behind Akane. The female laughed as her male companion sliced Akane's body horizontally and neatly in half. The blood splattered on the trees and on the ground. Shizuo turned and gasped as the two halves fell to the ground limply.

The blood splattered on the ground, on the trunk of the nearby tree, on his fucking _shoes_.

He scowled as the two noticed him. He felt himself heat up and lose his temper. He didn't hesitate as he swung his axe towards the woman, who shouted something incoherently. She was hurt badly by his blow. Her wound was fatal. Her companion hoisted her up and they ran off into the opposite direction.

Akane was mumbling something. Shizuo leaned down near her head, trying to avoid stepping onto her separate lower body and biting his lip anxiously. He managed to catch parts of what she was saying.

"Arena… Ten… Eleven."

The cannon boomed.

* * *

Mikado felt panic rise in his chest. He _killed _someone. He didn't even know what the man's name was or what district he came from, but he _killed _him. There was blood all over his hands and all he used to commit the murder was a dagger. When the man was about to impale him with a huge-ass mace, his first instinct was to fight back and pierce him with a dagger.

The dagger found its way into the man's heart.

Mikado tried not to throw up at the memory as he decided to look at the view from the mountain. There were fields and woods at the foot and more fields all around, but on the mountain were mostly rocks. He had a feeling that the view was fake, anyway. Where the hell could he go next? Nowhere was safe, since Careers were probably guarding the cave and the other threatening tributes were mostly seen scrambling out of the cave opening.

He walked and stopped, realizing that the weight of the weapons he was carrying was much too cumbersome. The mace he stole from the unknown tribute was heavy. Mikado put all his other stuff on the ground as he threw the mace down the mountainside with all his might. It thudded roughly against some rocks and finally disappeared into the fields below. No one could ever get his or her hands on it ever again.

The sunlight was blinding and the heat was starting to creep in. Mikado grabbed his things again and walked uphill- there could be a water source there, or some kind of pretty peak flag on the very top of the mountain.

He didn't notice someone follow him very quietly and quite closely behind.

A few hours later, he was still trudging up the mountain, thirst still unquenched. It was then becoming unsettling. He was tired, thirsty, and disheartened. Perhaps he'd be one of the boring people who'd die from dehydration or fatigue. It was a fitting end for him, anyway.

Mikado retrieved his only weapons from his bag- two daggers. He raised them up in the light of the sun, which was ever-so-slowly setting in the horizon, preparing to use them to somehow hunt for food. However, one blade was dull. He stared at it. "No… No way." Well, yes way. He was in possession of a useless _butter knife. _The Gamemakers and the rest of Panem were probably laughing at him right now. "Damn it!" he cursed loudly.

He tossed the knife behind him and bit his lip as he continued walking.

He stopped as he heard someone exclaim, "OW! Fuck, that hurts!"

Who the hell…?

* * *

Ran Izumii sharpened a long knife, sitting like a king deep in the center of the Cornucopia. The two friends from District One- Vorona and Slon- guarded the entrance to the cave, where sunlight poured in from the bright outside world. Vorona was feeling feverish as a result from her bloody, injured leg. Slon was taking care of her. This year, it was only the three of them and Anri Sonohara in the Career alliance.

Anri glanced nervously at the other three as she got stuck with the job of checking the contents of each and every backpack. She stiffly held up a lantern in her hand, squinting through her glasses to see in the dimness of the light. Suddenly, she felt someone step beside her.

Her instincts screamed for her to stand up and defend herself against whoever could be invading her privacy. Soon enough, her sword instantly found itself aimed at the neck of Ran. He grinned, calmly pushing the blade away and his eyes viciously taking in Anri's pure ferocity and voluptuous figure. "Calm down, girl. It's only us and those two lovebirds over there. I was just wondering if you wanted a lantern with a brighter flame. That one's dying out."

She cautiously exchanged lanterns with him, not wanting to risk setting the cave on fire, and coldly turned to inspect more of the items. Surprisingly, the Gamemakers decided to have a little more fun with the weapons and packs at the Cornucopia.

Some of the bags were empty while some of the weapons had dull, harmless edges. Those who didn't look closely at what they grabbed during the Bloodbath would most likely have gotten useless objects.

She noticed that Ran had not yet left her side and stood up to face him. "Um… Wh-what are you planning for the Career pack this year? Surely, y-you have a good idea of what we're supposed to do t-to survive here."

Ran laughed. "Seriously? Wow, I like you. Those two over there just care about surviving with each other. _You_, pretty lady, are asking me about the fucking plans!" He put an arm around her shoulder. Anri tried not to cringe and disgustedly pushed it away. "Don't be shy about it. You deserve to know. Well, I want us to guard the Cornucopia until the end of the Games. By then, the rest of the tributes will have to come here themselves and finish us off- if they can."

"Of course. A-and when it's only you, me, and Vorona and Slon left, you'll kill us off to win, w-won't you?"

"You're smart. That's exactly what I want to do and it would be stupid of me to hide it," he replied softly, his dark eyes glittering in the lantern light. "It would even be stupider of you to try and kill me."

Anri scowled, gripping the hilt of her sword tightly behind her back. "I'm not afraid of you."

Slon walked casually towards them, interrupting their conversation. Anri tried not to show her obvious irritation, mentally cursing the missed chance to kill Ran that passed merely a few seconds ago. Ran gave Slon two bottles of water and he went back to flirting with his district partner, sitting near the entrance with her bloody leg.

Vorona began telling them all the story of how she and Slon killed the little girl tribute and of how she was almost killed by Shizuo. Anri wasn't listening. She separated her chosen pack and weapon from the other items and decided to fix up a place to sleep somewhere later on. The spot in between the horn and the dark tunnel with the dead end seemed cozy enough. She would need more lanterns to light up the area, though.

Staying with the three loud and overly confident Careers was _not _an option. Anri was sure she was better than them. She could sneak away from them as soon as she saw fit. Their style of surviving was different from hers.

The man from District Three- was Izaya is name?- had commented to Anri right before the interviews that she didn't seem like a typical Career tribute. What did that guy mean? What could he possibly know? He must have seen right through her and guessed that she preferred to and was eventually going to work alone. Perhaps he was right. Anri did _not _want to bend or break under the clutches of Ran Izumii.

She remembered the first person she saw when the metal plate pushed her into the cave.

Right across the Cornucopia, Mikado had given her a small, friendly smile.

* * *

**Meh. I really have no idea where this is going, which is why opened a poll that will determine the fate of the characters. Vote for those whom you'd want to last long/ win in the Games. The poll is available on my profile. Click away. :)**

**Finalized pairings for this story: Shizuo/Izaya, Mikado/Anri, Shinra/Celty, Masaomi/Saki, Walker/Erika.**


	5. The First Night

**My cousin said she thought the arena was a field. *facepalm* Am I that bad at describing places? Ugh. To make everything clear, the arena is a mountain and the Cornucopia is a huge cave in the mountain. If you can't picture it, search "mountain cave" in Google images. **

**Why am I not surprised with the poll results? Shizuo and Izaya were tied for first place. The next day, Shizuo was winning. The next day, Izaya was winning. Tie. Shizuo. Izaya. Tie. Shizuo. Izaya. Repeat cycle. **

**I must say that I'm extremely pleased with this chapter. I was listening to some pretty good songs too! Soundtrack: Night of the Hunter by 30 Seconds to Mars, Fences by Paramore, Kyomu Densen by Ali Project.**

* * *

Chapter Five

The First Night

A butter knife. _A butter knife. _It was a fucking _butter knife _that gave him away.

"Masaomi?"

Mikado Ryuugamine's face had a mixture of both shock and relief as he turned around and looked closer at the trees behind him. Masaomi cursed, stepping forward to reveal himself and rubbing the spot on his forehead where the butter knife hit him. "Who the hell tosses a weapon around in the dark? The normal humane train of thought is to worry about possibly hitting someone!"

"Um, we're in the Hunger Games. Hurting people is sort of the objective, right? And I tossed it behind me because it was useless and I had no idea you were hiding there at the time," Mikado said with a small smile, holding out a hand and helping him up the rocky incline. "Besides, why were you following me like that?"

"You told me during training that you didn't want me as an ally, so-," he answered, frowning.

"No, I told you that I didn't want your pity," the black-haired boy interrupted, looking down in embarrassment, "But I realized that I really do need an ally. So, um, are you planning to continue following me from behind the shadows or are you going to join me in hunting for some food? We could both use some help, you know."

Masaomi grinned. "Let's go, then! First of all, though, where the hell did you get that damn butter knife?"

He laughed as he replied, "The Cornucopia had lots of weapons lying on the ground so I got whatever I could. Apparently, the Gamemakers must have joked around putting the items there, seeing that there was a butter knife. I didn't really pay attention to what I grabbed. Blood was splattering everywhere, after all…"

"I wonder what else could have been there. A cheese grater maybe. Or an ice cream scooper."

They laughed as they trudged off towards the side of the mountain where there were more trees and flat soil. It was nearing sunset when Masaomi had managed to set up a few simple snares. He even made an effort to teach some to Mikado, who obviously didn't have a thing at all with knots and such.

It was dark when they had finally caught a few animals- a rabbit and a huge furry animal that looked like a cross between a sheep and a camel. This soon became a heated subject of debate between the two.

Mikado hesitantly poked the dead sheep-camel's fur. "I didn't know sheep and camels could mate. We don't even know if this thing is edible. It might be a muttation, although it seemed pretty harmless…"

"Don't be silly, Mikado. Of course it's edible! And I think it's an alpaca. Or a llama. We have some of those back in District Eleven," the blond boy had answered cheerfully, preparing to cut and wash the corpse, "Besides, if it tastes bad even after we cook it with fire, I still have some bottles of water to chase the food down. Either that or we starve."

"I've never heard of any alpacas or llamas back in District Twelve. But if you say it's okay, then by all means…"

Surely enough, the alpaca/llama was edible and they managed to find a soft spot of soil underneath a clump of trees which was perfect for camping in. The tents were put up and their weapons brought out for quick use in case of an attack. Other tributes were probably camping in their own places by then, so their biggest worry was a muttation that could attack them in their sleep.

Masaomi sharpened the knife in his hand with a rock, calling out to Mikado, "You sleep first. I'll take watch and wake you up after a few hours. If you're thirsty, the other bottles of water are in my bag." He heard a faint reply from inside the tent.

He sat down on the ground, carefully placed the knife beside him, and pulled away the yellow scarf from around his neck, smelling the faint flowery sweet scent of the fabric that reminded him of Saki. She was probably watching him at that very moment, her heart breaking at the sight of him trying to survive on the mountain.

* * *

Shinra sighed, relieved, as he pulled a branch from the plant he was looking for. Finally, he had a pain reliever for the huge gash he had on his arm. It would have been wise if he had _not _played tug-of-war with the siblings from District Nine just for a bow-and-arrow and a backpack. The older sister really had a mean swing with daggers.

He carefully tended to his own wound while anxiously glancing left and right to check for other tributes possibly roaming around at the time. The sun was slowly setting and the warm air was turning into a cold breeze. He had to find someplace to camp for the night or else muttations could tear him limb by limb and feast on his flesh and blood. The details were achingly frightening, even when simply imagined.

All Shinra could think about as he walked on was Celty's wellbeing. When he last saw her at the Cornucopia, she had mercilessly hit Ran Izumii and run off with a spear and a mace like a true badass. Well, fine, she was probably safe and sound, hiding like a ninja and armed with her senses and weapons, but being concerned was not illegal, right?

Suddenly, staggering footsteps resounded close by, somewhere uphill. There was a chance, although small, that it was Celty. That simple thought caused Shinra to run forward and climb as fast as he could up the rocks. When he finally reached flat ground, he looked around at the trees and cautiously stepped closer to the sound, which was growing louder.

The brunette pushed aside a large bush.

He quickly ducked as a fist was aimed to his face.

"Don't hit me, dammit! I have a blowgun and I'm not afraid to shoot you!" the doctor retrieved his blowgun and shot hurriedly at the person in front of him. The darts didn't reach the target. "Take that!"

"Fuck, stop it. You're not even aiming properly. The only people I want to hurt on this mountain are the Careers and that cocky bastard Orihara. Now calm down," a deep voice growled, "I didn't think I'd find you."

Shinra lowered his blowgun and looked up. "Shizuo!"

Shizuo rolled his eyes and pulled the doctor up by the shoulder. "Yeah, it's me. The redhead was heading downhill the last time I saw her. It'd be stupid to follow anyone in the dark, though, so you're sticking with me."

"O-okay," he answered uncertainly, straightening up and adjusting his glasses as he took a closer look at the blond. "There's blood on your pants and on your shoes but there doesn't seem to be a wound on your body. That was neat, though, how you pulled me up with just one hand! Since when have you-"

"Rule number one, doc," the taller man said roughly as he turned away and continued walking, "I don't like talking about myself, especially my cursed brute strength. All the things I said in the interview- that's the most anyone can ever get out of me. Now shut up and let's go find somewhere to stay for the night." He did _not _want to talk more about himself, especially with the whole of Panem watching him on their television screens.

Shinra put the blowgun back in his backpack and silently followed Shizuo as they continued on the flat path of soil. Trees got thicker as they reached a side of the mountain which wasn't as barren and rocky as the area near the Cornucopia. The moon had risen and it was getting hard to see in the dark.

The blond stopped for a moment and retrieved a pair of what seemed to be glasses from his bag. He put them on. They were a dark shade of blue and somehow actually made him look cooler, fitting his appearance perfectly.

"You have night vision glasses! That's useful. At least one of us knows where he's going," Shinra commented lightly. Shizuo gave him an odd look. "By all means, continue on. I'll just follow the sound of your footsteps."

They walked towards no known destination, simply going a certain direction that didn't lead to the edge of the mountain. Finally, after what seemed like an hour or two, they had arrived at a both rocky and grassy area.

There was an opening across tall rocks lining a short cliff- a smaller version of the Cornucopia cave.

Shizuo led the way, stepping on spots where the stones didn't slip off to the ground below and carefully reaching the cave opening. He peeked inside and continued on, calling over to Shinra outside, "This place looks safe. Come on." He went inside and peered at the pitch black darkness of the cave, adjusting his night vision glasses. "Shinra-"

Suddenly, a blur of silver appeared in front of him. A knife was pressed against his throat.

"Uh, Shizuo? Why did you suddenly go quiet? What's-"

"Shit!" The blond cursed and kicked the person in front of him. The man fell, yelling a loud exclamation. Shinra rushed inside, shooting his blowgun. The person dodged and swiped his knife at Shizuo's shoulder, causing him to have no time to duck as Shizuo punched back. The man stumbled into the darkness and he threw his knife forward, which lodged itself onto the rocky wall behind Shinra.

A girl sprinted out of the cave, aiming at them with a slingshot and kicking Shizuo forcefully. "Stop it!"

There was an impregnable silence as the girl's scream echoed around the cave. They all froze in their positions, held by the simple command. The man stood up and stepped back, pulling the girl behind him protectively. He had dark, messy hair and crimson red eyes. It was Izaya Orihara. "My sister and I found this cave first. Find somewhere else to camp for the night. Otherwise, I'm actually going to _kill _someone. Now fuck off."

Shizuo glared at Izaya, his golden eyes flashing dangerously with fury. "Yes, gladly. Shinra, we're leaving."

Shinra staggered forward. "No. We're staying here. It's dark outside, Shizuo, and it's too dangerous. Izaya, if we stay, I can share my bottles of water. I also gathered several plants that cure lots of injuries and-"

"I am _not _staying here with that bastard!" he replied loudly, "I'd rather die."

The doctor smirked. "No you wouldn't. You want to win. Besides, it'd be silly for someone as strong as you to be killed by some muttation out in the night just because he refused to stay with another tribute. Just-"

Izaya interrupted cheerfully, sounding like he was enjoying the conversation, "I didn't say I'd let you come with us- unless, Shinra, you can actually convince me, of course. You were saying something about the plants?"

"Yes. Your sister's wounded, isn't she? She aimed properly at me with her slingshot but the stone didn't hit me because her arm was shaking. Your clothes are also stained with blood. I can help," Shinra replied immediately, "As for weapons, Shizuo has some spare knives in his pack but seeing that he isn't good with knives and _you_ are-"

"Damn you, I'm not giving him anything I own!" Shizuo growled impatiently, "Even if they're fucking knives!"

"No, don't worry. He will," the brunette said quickly, not taking his eyes off Izaya and Kururi.

The older brother stared at the two for a long while. He laughed. "You guys seriously thought I'd share this cave with anyone else? It's amusing, though," he bended forward, trying to contain his laughter, "I was egging you on. Whatever you do, you are _not _convincing me to stay in any close area with the _monster_."

The taller man clenched his fists and nodded, already turning to leave in an attempt to keep himself from losing his temper. "Okay, that settles it. The scheming bastard already said no. Let's leave him the fuck alone."

"I dipped my blowgun darts in deadly poisonous plant remains this morning," Shinra added softly, his voice solemn, "I'm also sure that I managed to hit your sister with them a while ago, which is why her arm is injured. She can die overnight with the strong poison in her system. I can help her recover, though, if you let us stay."

Izaya narrowed his eyes. "You're just bluffing. Besides, she's perfectly fine."

Kururi shook her head, saying quietly, "N-no, I'm not, Iza-nii."

He turned to look at her. She was pale and noticeably shivering, although her body temperature was heating up. Everyone looked at her as well and she lowered her eyes to the ground as a dark bloodstain grew on her sleeve. Her hand gripped her brother's tightly as the pain grew worse and spread throughout her entire body.

The doctor hurriedly rushed forward and led her towards the inside of the cave, where Izaya lit up a small fire and put one of their sleeping bags on the ground. Kururi lied down and Shinra immediately started tending to her wound. He looked up and exchanged a solemn glance with Shizuo, who awkwardly sat down near the fire.

"If you're staying in my cave, you have to make yourself useful. Give me your knives," Izaya said, annoyed.

The blond glared, reluctantly retrieving the knives from his bag and handing them over. "Fuck you, Izaya. Be grateful that I find your sister nice enough to make up for your bullshit. I _will_ kill you as soon as I can and you're not going to stand a chance against me."

"I'll be looking forward to it, Shizu-chan," the younger man answered, chuckling.

"Don't call me that, bastard!" he snapped, turning away to fix his sleeping bag. "Now go away before I kill you."

Suddenly, the national anthem played throughout the whole mountain and was followed by the death recap. Both Shizuo and Izaya went outside to look at the skies. The anthem faded out and the seal of the Capitol disappeared. The faces of the dead tributes then flashed, one by one, on the huge sky screen.

The first was the Career girl from District Four. Shizuo remembered seeing Celty spear her right in the chest during the bloodbath. Then the girl from Five. The girl from Six. The girl from Eight. Finally, both tributes from Ten. Izaya had witnessed Mikado accidentally kill the man, and Shizuo… He had allied with the little girl before two Careers had sliced her body in half right before him.

Six tributes had died on the first day. The Capitol seal came back with a final musical flourish. Darkness resumed.

Izaya went to sit by his sister's side and watched Shinra extract the poison from her system and treat her injury with precision, trying to seem like the concerned older brother for the cameras. Silence reigned over them all like a little monarch strutting around the cave with a crown on his head. None of them could sleep. A muttation howled outside and their little fire was dying out.

Shinra broke the silence as he continued tending to Kururi, who was unconscious but otherwise still stable. "Did anyone important or threatening die?"

The blond shook his head, putting on his night vision glasses to see in the cave. "Just a few girls."

"Oh. Hey Izaya, how did you and your sister find this place?" He looked up from the bunch of plants he was holding and focused on the dark-haired man's face showing a mixture of amusement and exhaustion.

"Well, it's a long story…"

* * *

Shizuo was the first person he saw as soon as the metal plate had pushed him up into the arena. The brute was right across him and still taking in his surroundings until, eventually, he had found Izaya's eyes as well and started glaring at him as always. It was rather comforting that the little enjoyment they had pissing each other off during training could still be done in the arena. Well, until they'd end up killing each other, of course.

Kururi was three tributes away from him. She looked extremely nervous but otherwise focused on the sixty seconds that were ticking off one by one towards the ring of the gong that would set them free into the Cornucopia. They'd grab their weapons and backpacks and make the choice: either run off or kill the others.

Soon enough, the sound of the gong had echoed throughout the whole cave.

Izaya grinned, sprinting forward to grab several knives and strike at tributes in his way. He felt his sister follow closely behind, also retrieving weapons along the way. He swooped down to get a bag on the ground and turned, quickly beckoning Kururi to run ahead of him as he cleared out the area for them to flee towards the nearest exit.

That was their plan from the start- stick together, grab every useful item that meets the eye, and get as far away from the Cornucopia as possible. The Careers were dangerous and they had to aim for finding some source of water or place to survive.

Someone had already broken through the boulders that blocked the cave opening and a few had already fled. People inside were killing in the dim flames of the lanterns while people outside were running in broad daylight. Trees were scattered here and there. Rocky inclines indicated the arena being a mountain. Kururi held her brother's hand tightly as they went close to the edge and peeked down at the ground below.

It was extremely tall. Izaya cursed, eyeing a few tributes running near their direction and looking like they were about to attack anyone in their path. He led his sister downhill- the foot of the mountain seemed like a more promising place to be rather than the barren diagonal land that was so hard to walk on.

"Iza-nii, do you think there's a source of water or probably animals to eat down there?" Kururi asked anxiously, glancing behind them as they edged down the slightly grassy incline. "I hope no one gets the same idea, though."

"Well, if they do, we're ready to defend ourselves, aren't we?" the older brother said roughly, throwing his knife at a visible animal below. They ran towards it, finding that the knife landed perfectly in its eye. It was a stag. "Great! Only a few minutes in the Games and we already got ourselves some food." He pulled the knife out of the bloody eye and wiped the blood off on a random piece of cloth in his backpack.

Later, the stag was chopped up, cooked quickly in a small fire which they put out as soon as possible, and placed in a tupperware in Izaya's bag to eat later, since they weren't yet hungry. They continued on downhill, the sun rising high in the sky.

It was nearing sunset when something interesting had actually happened.

Kururi was drinking from the small stream they had found after the short snack of stag during their rest. She was kneeling down, splashing the cold water onto her face and finally letting her guard down. She heard a rustle of bushes further downhill and she peeked over the edge, seeing the redhead from District Twelve- her name was Celty, wasn't it?- running off down the mountain. That was when it growled loudly behind her.

The muttation bounded towards her direction, bright eyes wide in hunger and yellow teeth bared in defence. She gripped the huge rock on the ground tightly behind her as she closed her eyes, waiting for impact. A ripping sound greeted her instead. She opened her eyes and blood splattered everywhere as Izaya cut the animal's head off with a knife. He had saved her.

"I-it was going to kill me! Iza-nii, wh-" He reached down and grabbed her hand, leading her away from the stream and running uphill, their backpacks over their shoulders. Growls, roars, and sounds of paws landing hard on the rocky land taunted them as more muttations were on their trail, longing for meat to rip apart and feast on.

"Shit, they're everywhere!" Izaya exclaimed angrily, tossing over a knife to his sister, who caught it uneasily. They continued running uphill with much difficulty, occasionally slaying a few of the monstrous beasts all the while. "We have to climb from here. Hurry up, grab that plant!"

Then, the sounds of a tree breaking, falling, and hitting a rock echoed throughout the whole mountain. This was followed by several agonizing howls of muttations. "Iza-nii, do you think it was a person who did that?" They both looked back, held by the sound. However, no cannon boomed. "They could have been chased by muttations and then decided to cut down the tree… What if they're hurt?"

The mutated bear-wolves that were chasing them had also turned their heads towards the direction of the distraction, but very much turned their attention back to the two as they continued jumping uphill. "Kururi, go! I'll kill off some of these fucking monsters. Just follow the rocks we passed earlier going down!"

The younger sister leaned on a small ledge of stone as she quickly tied her hair in a tight ponytail. She turned and continued climbing up the rocks, using up all of her willpower to not look down at her brother and the muttations. Finally, she had reached the top and felt relief flood within her at the sight of grass and thicker trees.

Izaya cursed loudly. She pulled him up to the flat surface and he leaned down, holding his bleeding leg. "Fuck. I didn't expect one of them to be able to jump up so high and reach my leg just like that. At least I killed it…"

"Were you bitten, Iza-nii? It could be poisoned or-!"

"Tsk! Of course not, dear sister. It's just a deep scratch from one of its claws. Besides," he retrieved a bottle of water from his bag and splashed it onto the wound. Then, he bended over and grabbed a long leaf from a plant nearby, wrapping it around his leg tightly. "It's not that hard to treat it. How about you? Are you okay?"

Kururi looked straight into her brother's eyes- the same shade of crimson red as hers and her twin sister's- and shook her head, trying not to let the tears spill out. "I-I'm okay. I'm just a little shaken, that's all…"

"Yeah, whatever," he replied lightly, remembering the cameras recording all their actions for the whole of Panem and taking her hand as they walked on, "I was hoping we'd find a person, though. That person who possibly cut down that tree… I wonder who it was… Probably not those siblings from District Nine, since I saw them go uphill earlier… The girl from District Ten was with the other guy. It might be the-"

"Wait! I think I know who it is," she interrupted his monologue, eyes wide, "I saw the woman from District Twelve further downhill while I was drinking from the stream. She seemed to be running away from something, though. What if she's hurt?"

Izaya frowned. "Oh- Celty? Well, she can defend herself. She has advantages that I've noted. It's such a pity she isn't with _him, _though. It'd be interesting if they were actually together. I'm certain they'd make a good couple…"

"You totally lost me. I don't know what you're talking about anymore," Kururi said, confused.

"Nah, you don't have to know. I have lots of things to think about regarding the other tributes," he answered flippantly, walking up the rocky incline. His sister followed behind him. "I'm actually disappointed we haven't encountered anyone else yet. If we do, I hope we won't have to kill them. We should talk to them, even!"

Kururi rolled her eyes. "You're really obsessed with socializing and psychology and crap. And stop saying 'we'!"

He ignored her comment. "We have to go back uphill. The bottom of the mountain may be full of food and water, but it's packed with those muttations too. Stay close or else you'll be dead the next second."

"I can defend myself!" she replied crossly.

A few minutes later, they had found the small cave that had safely sheltered them for a few hours. Luck was still on their side as an innocent mountain rabbit happened to hop into their territory and got itself eaten for dinner. Everything was peaceful and safe, until Shizuo and Shinra had found them as well.

* * *

"Let me get your whole story straight, then," Shinra said incredulously, after the long silence that ensued when Izaya finished retelling their experience. "You went downhill, found lots of water sources and animals, but found _twice as many_ muttations too? And to top it all off, you fucking saw _and _heard Celty being chased by those mutated animals as well? Why didn't you go back for her? She might have died or-!"

The black-haired man interrupted, laughing, "No, Shinra. There was no cannon. She's still alive. She even cut down a _tree_! Stop worrying. You can look for her tomorrow in the morning, when you're calm and well-rested. "

Shizuo spoke up, his golden eyes resting on the two sitting by the wall and the blue night vision glasses aiding him in the darkness of the cave. "For once, I agree with Izaya. We can go downhill and look for her tomorrow. Besides, downhill's where everything's at, according to the bastard's story. The muttations are another thing."

"True," the doctor replied, finally lying down to sleep, "You and your sister found streams and herds of deer there… I really do hope Celty's alive. Knowing her, I'm sure she's surviving pretty well but I'm still worried."

"Personally, I'm excited. If we're planning to explore the mountain tomorrow, the Gamemakers might have some more shit in store for us. Plus, there's the possibility that we might run into other tributes," Izaya added thoughtfully, pulling his jacket tighter around him to keep warm.

"We? _We?_" the blond said coldly, "Shinra and I will look for Celty. You and your sister should stay away from us."

"Oh, Shizu-chan! Whatever do you mean by that? You don't want to spend more time with me? And I thought we were close friends…"

"Fuck you. I don't trust you at all. Knowing you, you might actually murder me in my sleep."

"Now why would I do that? That wouldn't be fun at all, if I got rid of you so quickly!"

Shizuo stood up, fists clenched. "That's it, you flea! I was trying to be patient, but you're really asking for it now!"

Izaya laughed, standing up as well and quickly dodging the taller man's punches. "With that attitude, it seems like you're the one who'll be killing me in my sleep. Everyone knows you're pretty messed up."

"Shut up, you bastard! You're just as fucked up as I am!"

He grabbed his knife. "How would you know that? You don't know who I _really _am, Shizuo. We just met."

"Yeah, that's because you always put on a show for the cameras, doing all this big talking and pretending to be the best tribute in the Games. At least I'm being myself. If I ever die, and I know I won't, I _will _die as myself!"

"That is truly inspiring, coming from a monster. If _I _ever die, and I know I won't, I'm going out in style," he put on a sarcastic tone, "And who knows? You might actually win!"

"Oh yes, I will, _Izaya-kun… _Now DIE!" The blond charged at him and they engaged in serious combat.

"Sheesh. You act like such a protozoan, as always. Is that your best shot? Kill me!"

"I sure as hell will!"

"Stop it, you two! Shizuo, sit down! Izaya, put away the damn knife!" Shinra yelled angrily, "Don't forget that you're in an _alliance. _Who knows what you might attract with the noise you're making? Besides, there are people trying to sleep here. Knock it off or I swear I'll shoot at you with my poisonous darts to do it for you!"

The other two didn't take their eyes off each other and reluctantly reverted back to silence. The darkness of their cave seemed to grow darker if possible and the wind howled, making the temperature around them drop down to something degrees near zero, probably. They lied down and slept, thoughts of killing each other pushed to the backs of their minds as they tried to keep warm in their sleeping bags.

Shinra kept watch to make sure that neither of the two would suddenly wake up and decide to murder the other.

* * *

**The next chapter will focus a little bit more on the younger ones. I have lots of fuckery in store for you lol **

**GO TO MY PROFILE. SAVE A (fictional) LIFE. VOTE FOR A TRIBUTE.**


	6. Hazardous Land

**I refreshed the poll on my profile. You can now vote for THREE tributes. :P  
**

**The previous chapter was sooo boring. It's about time someone freaking DIES, right? *cackles evilly***

**For today, we have three English songs because I didn't feel like listening to anything Japanese. Soundtrack: I'm Alive by Shinedown, Shake It Out by Florence and the Machine, Closer to the Edge by 30 Seconds to Mars.**

* * *

Chapter Six

Hazardous Land

"You should talk more, you know."

Anri ignored Vorona, who sat down beside her by the entrance of the cave. It was her turn to keep guard, anyway. The two men were at the other side of the cave, conversing lightly about something.

"I have nothing to say," She answered quietly, "So I don't need to talk."

The cheerful blonde laughed. "That's not true. We're in the fucking Hunger Games, so of course you have lots to say. You're lying if you insist that there's no chance of you getting killed, because there is. There always is."

The black-haired teen looked away. "Well, you're awfully chatty, aren't you?"

"No, I'm worse around Slon," she replied nonchalantly, "We're not romantically involved, although we're really good friends that we trust each other with our own lives. You must have someone like that, too."

Anri couldn't help but think about Mikado. She looked back at Vorona's earnest, blue eyes and decided to be honest, despite knowing that the cameras were probably going to let the whole of Panem hear as well, "I know someone who wants to be like that towards me too… But I'm afraid. Things might not end well."

"It's another tribute, isn't it? Don't hold back, then! I can tell you're itching to distance yourself as far away from Ran as possible," the older woman said, standing up to leave. "Besides, if you feel more comfortable with that certain someone, you should stay with him, just like how I'm staying with Slon."

"I see…"

Vorona asked excitedly, "Can I take a few guesses, though? About whom it is?" Anri nodded. The blue-eyed woman paused for a few seconds, tilting her head to the side and thinking hard. "Is it Kadota from District Six? He's the silent and strong type, plus he's always acting so mysterious and stuff."

"No. I have a feeling you'll never be able to guess."

"Don't say that! Hmm… The funny kid Walker, from District Five!"

"No. Take one last."

"Agh! Um… Shizuo Heiwajima!" she exclaimed, grinning. Anri frowned. "Come on, not him? He's really handsome, really strong, and really cool. Anyone would want to team up with him. Don't tell me it's someone really weak!"

The younger girl smiled. "You like Shizuo, don't you? And I told you! You wouldn't be able to guess."

"Like I said, Shizuo's handsome, strong, and cool. Even though he hurt my leg, I do like him," she admitted, smiling, "Anyway, you win, Anri. Whoever it is, though, I do hope you both see each other again. I'm sure he's better company than Ran, who, I can tell, hates you as much as you hate him. It's easy to shake him off, you know. You can just leave."

While the ditzy blonde was walking towards her best friend, Anri had made a decision.

Mikado wanted her to be allies with him, but she was too proud to accept that she actually wanted it too. She didn't want to accept that she wasn't _truly _a Career. However, after Vorona talked to her, she knew that she could restart her life in the arena.

She discreetly started packing her bags as soon as their group had finished feasting on some breakfast. Her sword was neatly sheathed on her belt and she was in possession of a rope and a flashlight, just in case those were needed. She also secretly stole several bottles of water and stashed them in her backpack, making sure that no one was watching her while doing so.

For a few seconds, she sat down on the ground, her back against the dead end of the cave, to relax. She felt the rock wall behind her, confused. Was it just her imagination or did the rock feel a bit… _warm_?

It was nearing noon when Anri sprinted away out of the cave, using a slingshot to hit Ran in the face as he tossed a throwing axe in her direction. She dodged and threw a knife at him, which lodged itself in his leg.

"Fuck you, bitch!" he yelled furiously as she pushed aside the large boulder covering the entrance, "We're going to find you and you'll be the first I'll kill when we do that!" She looked back at him coldly with her reddish brown eyes. He added, laughing, "No, wait, I'll just kill you right after I kill that coward from District Twelve! He's the one you're running off to, right? I saw him look at you yesterday when we all got here! Is it true, bitch?"

"I'm not your bitch," she said softly, glancing one last time at Vorona, who smiled at her sadly, "Good bye."

She ran outside and instantly headed uphill after a few seconds of contemplation. That's when the skies darkened and a sudden downpour washed over the mountain. The rain got harder and visibility reached near zero.

Despite her current situation, Anri was happy. She was going to look for Mikado and stay with him because he was the first and only person to understand that she didn't want to just win the Games, that she wanted to be seen as a human being, not an emotionless killing machine. Mikado gave her hope that she could get rid of the devil within her and Vorona gave her the liberty to escape from the darkness of the cave.

Anri continued running, knowing that to stop was tantamount to suicide and that to give up was to give in.

* * *

Izaya Orihara laughed it off. He knew that Shizuo Heiwajima hated him enough to kill him but he also knew that the brute was pure-hearted enough to stay true to an alliance and be nice to Shinra and Kururi too. Besides, if he killed Izaya, the latter two would most likely hate him and abandon him.

Therefore, Izaya knew perfectly well that Shizuo was simply waiting for his chance.

He could manipulate Shizuo, though, by killing him but making it look like an accident or sending him straight to some suicidal mission without the man knowing. The best choice, however, was to personally kill him in a fight.

A fight which, of course, Izaya was beginning to heat up.

"Okay, guys," he called out to the other three walking along with him in broad daylight, "This is where Kururi and I climbed to escape from the muttations. So far, there aren't any. It's safe to say that the Gamemakers don't want us killed by those just yet. We can split into two groups to search for Celty."

Shinra nodded. "Perfect. I'll go with Shizuo and you can go with your sister. Both groups have strong fighters."

Izaya smirked at the doctor. "Nope, I'd like to go with Shizuo. It would be nice if we could talk and settle things once and for all while searching. Besides, you and Kururi can defend yourselves enough."

"Iza-nii, what exactly are you-" Kururi started curiously.

"Shush, little sister," the black-haired man said softly, "I'm sure you're worried about me, but I'll be fine."

"No, you're not what I'm worried about…" she muttered to herself.

"What was that?"

"Fine, I'll go with the flea," Shizuo interrupted their conversation hastily, "I just want to get this over with."

Shinra glared at the two. "Just make sure nothing unnecessary happens down there."

Kururi reluctantly walked off with the doctor, who had a hard time parting with the two enemies as well. They had taken the other side of the mountain that led to the stream. Izaya and Shizuo were left to search downhill, right where Celty was last sighted.

A tense silence ensued as they carefully trudged down the steep, rocky inclines.

"What makes you so sure that we're going to find Celty?" Izaya questioned the blond as they continued searching, "And what's in it for you? Helping Shinra find his dear friend, I mean. It's not like you owe them or anything."

Shizuo rolled his eyes and explained slowly as if talking to a child, "Celty, unlike you, was actually nice to me in the few times we encountered each other back in training. Shinra, once again unlike you, did the same and I happened to run into him yesterday, so he wanted to focus on looking for Celty. I, very very much unlike you, am a good man and I decided to help."

"Oh, I'm absolutely regretfully sorry, Shizu-chan," he replied cheerfully, giving the man beside him a devious glance as they trudged on, "Are you under the impression that all humans think the same way?"

"No, I'm under the impression that the way you think is so twisted that it's inhuman."

"Maybe I'm not human. Maybe I'm _better_ than human."

"Tsk. When hell freezes over, that is."

Izaya tilted his head to the side in mock confusion. "I haven't been doing anything particularly wrong, you know. I'm just asking you questions so I can get to know more about you and we're currently conversing lightly like allies should. Besides, I haven't even directly killed anyone in the Games so far."

"That's because you're the type of guy who'd kill someone indirectly," the blond answered tightly.

"Wow, you're pretty sharp for a protozoan!" he commented, holding back his laughter, "I'll give you a prize for that then- some… _information_ that you might want to know." He paused dramatically, his crimson eyes scanning the trees around them. "When you ran off with Akane, the little girl from District Ten, out of the Cornucopia cave and into the grassy area, I saw you."

Shizuo froze. "What the fuck did you do…?"

"The two Careers, Slon and Vorona, went out as well to kill off all the useless wandering tributes still around the cave," he continued, ignoring the taller man's outburst, "I threw a rock in the direction you went off. They followed the sound and found you two. It was stupid of you to let the poor girl take the rear, you know."

"Damn you!" the blond shouted as he, right then and there, uprooted an innocent tree right beside him. He promptly swung it towards the black-haired man. "She was just a girl! She could have lived! You _manipulated_-"

Izaya scowled, trying to dodge and ending up with a deep scratch on the side of his face. He swiped a knife against the other's body. Blood fell on the ground as they fought. "So what? One less opponent, you know. Was she going to win the Games? If she had lived, would you have died for her, Shizuo? Was she worth dying for?"

"You heartless monster! Die!" he yelled, throwing aside the tree and resorting to fists. One blow landed on Izaya's shoulder as he failed to sidestep. The man fell back, wincing as he threw a knife straight at the blond man's arm.

"I bet not! You wouldn't die for someone who can't even survive on their own, right? She would have gotten herself killed anyway, so why bother grieve over her death?" the younger man taunted, using his knives to block the other's attacks. He added maliciously, "You're the monster, Shizuo!"

Suddenly, Shizuo stopped. He panted and breathed deeply, looking down at the ground, at the specks of blood that belonged to both of them. "I won't kill you yet. I can't." He looked up and grinned. "I'm not a monster. You are. You're saying I should have let her die and forget about her because she couldn't defend herself on her own. You're saying I should have let her die and forget about her because I had my own Games to win."

There was silence as he paused to calm himself. "Well, _Izaya-kun_, imagine I was saying that about your sister."

More silence. A flock of birds flew above them. The sky darkened. A single drop of water fell on the ground between them and they both stared at it, the tense atmosphere engulfing them both.

"That's different," Izaya replied. His voice took on a strange tone.

"No, it's not," Shizuo insisted, his golden eyes gazing at him intently, "If Kururi died, you'd realize that it's not. Is she going to win the Games? Are _you _going to win the Games? How can you, when her twin is waiting at home?"

"Do I have to repeat myself, you brute? That's different!"

"No, it's fucking not!"

It started to rain hard. The raindrops fell heavily on the ground and they were beginning to get royally wet. They exchanged intense looks of hatred and abandoned their argument. They ran back to the incline and climbed once more up the rocks, else the rain made them too slippery to hold onto. When they both had reached the top, Shinra and Kururi were waiting there with anxious looks on their faces.

Shinra ran towards them. "You… didn't find her, did you?"

Shizuo scowled. "If we did find her, she'd be right behind us, you know."

"I know! I'm just really worried," the doctor fretted, "This rain is making the sides of this mountain slippery and unsteady. She might get hurt or fall off or… Or anything! Kururi and I searched the stream, though."

"The stream- or rather, what's left of it," she said softly, "It dried up overnight. Maybe the Gamemakers want us to die of thirst, which is unlikely because they suddenly gave us lots of rain showers. Talk about inconsistent."

They quickly brought out their water bottles and containers, filling them full to the brim with the rainwater. When they were done, they even held their tongues out and refreshed themselves straight from the downpour. Soon enough, lightning lit up the sky in a flash and thunder echoed throughout the whole mountain.

"This could be from one of our sponsors," Shinra said hopefully, "We should be thankful."

Izaya looked around them. "Sponsors… Mine and Kururi's, probably. It would be silly to assume that Shizu-chan _actually _attracted some of his own. I mean," he stopped when his sister gave him a pointed look. Shizuo clenched his fists but didn't move. "I appreciate all the water, but this rain is a little too much. It might actually cause some real harm. We should hurry up and go back to our cave before visibility reaches zero."

They all agreed and quickly continued on under the cold, hard rain.

* * *

Erika Karisawa gazed up at the sky. A huge and dark cloud hovered over the other side of the mountain, seemingly touching the tips of the trees in the distance, and it was obvious that whoever was staying at that area was about to be drenched in a downpour of rain. She frowned and turned to the man beside her.

"Walker…" she muttered softly, her voice lacking the usual optimism, "I think some other tributes got their sponsors to give them water. There's a freaking huge raincloud ahead of the stream place we came across yesterday."

Walker Yumasaki looked up from the snare he was setting up and turned to look at his companion. His eyes glittered as he smiled at her mischievously. "Hey, we'll manage. We can do anything together, right?"

She smiled back, pumping a fist in the air enthusiastically. "Yeah! We have the will and the wits to survive this thing. Besides, we're so clever. No one else thought of staying outside and guarding the Cornucopia cave except us!"

"Yup. We totally have alien brains. This way, we know where the Careers are," the blond man added, scanning the area for any animals, "They're our biggest worry for now. Uh, is it just me or is it getting a bit hot…?"

"Not cool. One side of the mountain's soaking wet while the other's boiling hot. I wonder if anyone else is going to die today," she commented offhandedly as she tied her black hair in a ponytail and set down a sleeping bag next to Walker's under the tree.

Just then, a flock of featherless birds flew and landed on the tree near theirs and stared at them, tweeting madly. There were about twenty of them, three on each branch. Their eyes were bulging and their beaks and claws were hooked and extremely sharp. No feathers covered their bodies, making them seem more sinister than they sounded. Wings flapped as they noticed Walker and Erika standing nearby.

"Gross. They look like winged Voldemorts with beaks," Walker mumbled, slowly backing away.

"Maybe this is their territory. They look like they freaking own the tree," Erika muttered, following him carefully, "And I disagree. They look more like mutated, featherless bird Pokemon."

"Maybe they're like dinosaurs. We shouldn't move if we don't want them to see us," he whispered quietly, not taking his eyes off the birds and cautiously picking up their slingshots from her bag. He handed one to Erika. They froze as the birds squawked louder. "Never mind. It's too late."

"Maybe talking to them can help," she insisted nervously, trying to sound cheerful. She cleared her throat as the birds shifted their attention to her, wings still flapping furiously. "Oh mighty flock of hairless vultures. My friend and I come in peace and we respect your protected tree. We would only humbly request for you to, er-"

"Maybe back off?" Walker suggested, hiding his slingshot behind his back, "We have no intention of hurting any of your fine unfeathered heads and we can even offer our most sincere offerings of food, like chicken and-"

The birds suddenly took off and flew at them, tweeting noisily as their claws were steady to strike. Erika and Walker instantly shot at them and tried to block the furious attacks using their arms. Blood from both sides splattered everywhere as knives were brought out and bird corpses fell to the ground.

Erika hacked at the only bird still attacking her, beheading it as it flew to Walker instead. He aimed at the three other birds left and reloaded stones in his slingshot, shooting several times in quick succession. The birds squawked helplessly and fell to the ground. For a few long seconds, the two panted and wiped the blood off their faces, exchanging tired glances.

"I think they didn't like it when you mentioned offering them chicken," Erika said to him, grinning.

"Yeah," Walker replied sheepishly, kicking one away from his foot, "My bad. Their scratches really hurt, though."

"That felt like a scene from a video game. They were flipping around like necromorphs," she said, frowning.

"More like Angry Birds except they're aiming at us, not pigs," he added, laughing while going back to their sleeping bags and getting a few bandages from his backpack. "And they're also not multicolored."

Erika laughed as well, sitting down to rest. "It would have been prettier if they weren't the color of rotten scone."

Walker sat down next to her, handing her bandages. "Well, I don't understand why our demon butler didn't show up… The contract isn't over and those vultures were considered a danger for us to be protected from, right?"

Erika crossed her arms, disappointed. "Right. And we're immortal, aren't we? Why aren't our cuts healing up?"

Walker scowled, snapping his fingers. "None of our magical powers work here either. I lost my ability to feel life sources and no matter how hard I concentrate, I can't seem to teleport! This is all too strange."

Erika nodded, her expression completely solemn. "It's a shame. I'm sure those would help. At least we still have our special ninja combat techniques and our wits to guide us! We can get through this, Walker."

Walker smiled, holding her hand reassuringly. "Yeah, we will. Even if our cuts sting our skin and the cold of the night freezes us until we can't move, nothing can kill our spirits! Now to spy on the Careers…"

They both retrieved their binoculars and cautiously watched the entrance of the cave, where a slab of rock blocked half of the hole. Suddenly, a girl ran out with two backpacks and a sword, not stopping to look behind her. She had short black hair and noticeably seemed to have glasses on. She was definitely a Career, but why was she running away?

Before Erika and Walker could squint to confirm the tribute's identity, a small parachute blocked their view.

"It's something from our sponsors!" Erika squealed excitedly, dropping her binoculars to stand and run to the falling item. She caught it and quickly brought it over to Walker, who continued using his binoculars to try and catch a glimpse of the girl who ran off.

He stood up and pried the lid off. Inside was a bottle of green, mushy liquid that sloshed lethargically around as they shook it. "Erika… I think that's ointment for our cuts! We have bandages but they still sting, so…"

She grinned and opened the bottle, tipping some of the contents to her fingers. She first applied some on Walker's face. The effect was instantaneous. The ointment had dulled the pain and soothed the cuts to heal. After a few minutes of applying it on each other, they closed it and put it in Erika's bag for future use.

The sound of rain echoed throughout the whole mountain. It was clear that the downpour they had predicted earlier had started on the other side while their own side was still warm.

Walker sat down and picked up his binoculars. "Well, they're not the only ones with sponsors now~"

Erika giggled, sitting down next to him and gulping down from her jug of water. "Sponsors? What are you talking about, Walker? That was a gift from the little angels flying above this mountain and flashing their panties to the people below! I think they like us. I can even hear them going 'pipiru-piru' right now…"

* * *

Mikado cracked open a nut, examining it carefully. It seemed to be good to eat. He tossed it into his mouth and chewed, satisfied with the sweet and salty flavor it brought to his tongue. So far, Masaomi had no luck hunting for any animals, even with his properly set up nets. The said person was a few rocks away, scanning the inclined horizon for any game he could have trapped.

It had started with a single drop. Mikado looked up from his sitting position under the tree and thought that maybe some leftover dew from the leafy branches had fallen after a long while. It was possible, considering that the tree they found was the only tree around the barren area.

Then, the drop was followed by another. And another. Before he knew it, it had started raining and Masaomi was running back, shaking his head dejectedly. The temperature fell quickly and the rain turned into an extremely strong storm.

Masaomi scowled, hugging his jacket closer around himself as he sat down beside his friend. He gave Mikado a sour look. "Man, I was hoping we could explore this mountain a bit more. Probably check the Cornucopia if we could get some items or something."

"No, the Careers are there for sure," he answered, looking away. He tried his best to keep his voice even and void of emotion. "They'd want to guard the remaining weapons and packs, so they could keep everything to themselves. Besides, I bet other tributes had that idea too. We might run into a full-out fight zone."

"You're thinking about Anri, aren't you?" the blond asked testily, grinning and nudging Mikado in the ribs.

"Stop that!" the other boy snapped, standing up. "If you really want to do something, then let's go- rain or shine."

"Dude, we can't even see anything past the damn raindrops. I was just kidding about Anri. I understand what you feel about her. She's a _Career_, though. Waaay out of your league," Masaomi said earnestly, grabbing his friend's hand, "She might impale you with her sword or you might not even get past the two District One lovebirds."

Mikado sighed. "I asked her personally, right before the assessment, if she wanted to be allies with me."

"Wait, what?"

"She looked as lonely and sad as I was! Just because she's a Career doesn't mean she has to like it, right?"

"Um, Mikado? They're _Careers_, for fuck's sake. Liking the Hunger Games is what they _do_."

"Well, why did she say yes, then?" the dark-haired teen asked quietly.

Masaomi stared. "She… said yes? But why? Why would she want to be your ally?"

"Don't go insulting me now, Masaomi," Mikado replied wryly, crossing his arms and gazing at the rain, "I don't exactly know why, but she did. She didn't want to be part of a group of killing machines. She wanted to ally with me. This is just a guess, but I think I'm the first and only person that treated her like a human being, just as she was the first and only person that treated me like I wasn't a hopeless case."

His friend whistled lowly. "Wow, man. You got it good. If that's the case, why is she in the cave right now and not with you?"

"That's what I don't know," he answered darkly, clenching his fists, "That's what I'm going to find out."

Before Masaomi could reply, a loud rumble echoed throughout the mountain. They both turned their heads uphill, where the sound seemed to be coming from. Lo and behold, there was a huge-ass rock rolling down the barren incline. The two exchanged puzzled glances and got up, watching the large object.

It crashed into a bunch of boulders that looked like they were forming cliff shapes, and everything went tumbling down. The ground itself moved from the impact and even further uphill, soil started rolling down as well.

The rain had caused a landslide.

Mikado grabbed his only bag and unzipped it, throwing his supply of nuts inside. Masaomi leaned down to pick up his rope and snare, tossing a small dagger into the bag over his shoulder. They ran down the mountain, ignoring the hard rain pounding on their backs.

Visibility reached near zero yet despite not being able to see anything ahead of them, the two boys sprinted and stumbled down the rocky inclines. The low rumble of the landslide echoed behind them and stopping was obviously tantamount to death. Stones started hitting their ankles by the time they got to a slightly grassy place.

Masaomi yelled, and the largest rock falling down dangerously near them had hit a tree next to Mikado. A loud crack resounded throughout the area and the land gave way to the weight. The cliff crashed down and even when the sound was no match for the sound of the thunder above them, Masaomi knew that his friend could have fallen with it.

By sacrificing himself and joining the Hunger Games, he had lost contact with love, with Saki- perhaps forever. But there was absolutely _no way _he was going to stand losing his only ally and his last and final friend.

"Mikado! MIKADO!"

Silence greeted him. Well, not silence. Rocks were still falling behind him and sliding down the ground he was standing on. Rumbles and crashes echoed throughout the whole mountain. He stood, shocked, his eyes widening at the thought of more loss. Then, something inside him moved. _No. Fucking. Way._

He ran forward and peeked over the edge, panic flooding him as stones started hitting the backs of his knees.

"I'm fine, dammit!" He laughed out loud, relieved, and pulled his friend up the cliff.

"Why the hell did you go to those rocks? The landslide could have crushed you down the ground and-"

Mikado pulled away from his friend, who was trying desperately to drag him away from the cliff, where more of the landslide was about to strike. He shook his head, pointing down at the slightly grassy path edging the vibrating mountain wall below them.

Masaomi followed the direction the black-haired teen was pointing it and gasped as he saw the figure of a girl holding onto the rocky cliff wall, exasperated, as the landslide was headed right towards her.

"It's Anri! She could die! We have to get to her before-"

A loud crash signified large rocks and dislodged land sliding down behind them.

* * *

Anri hastily wiped the moisture from her glasses and put them on again. Not like there was any difference. The rain was still making everything else invisible as it pounded down on the soil. She bit her lip and continued on, one hand holding her backpacks tightly and the other feeling the mountain wall beside her. One wrong step and she could fall down the edge.

Surprisingly, the mountain wall managed to stay warm despite the pouring rain. Anri frowned as the drops splashed heavily on the ground, making her prone to falling down the edge even more easily. Before anything else, she felt a strong vibration on her hand, which was touching the mountain wall.

She stopped and stared suspiciously at the rocks that she had clutched onto for dear life. What was that vibration? The ground she was standing on seemed to be vibrating too. And was that a rumbling sound coming from the upper part of the mountain? The thunder sounded way too different from that low rumble.

The faint cries of Ran Izumii resounded in her mind. He threatened her life- and Mikado's. He didn't want her to leave the Careers since he knew she was an important asset, an important ally to have. But he also knew that she had the potential to win the Quarter Quell. Anri closed her eyes for a moment to calm herself. The damn man had always managed to make her blood boil. Killing him was going to be a pleasure.

But she also remembered Vorona. Vorona had helped her realize what she really wanted to do in the Games. She guided her towards thinking that she wasn't happy with the Careers or with being a lone killing machine. Anri almost wished the blonde woman had gone with her as she escaped the cave, but she already had Slon to be with.

Anri also remembered Mikado. He talked to her while she was training with her sword back in the Capitol. He tried to strike up a conversation, but she had boldly shooed him away. He came up to her right before the assessment and eased her nervousness, even offering to be her ally in the arena. He had the courage to mention her- not her name, but her own being- during the interviews. He smiled at her at the Cornucopia. He wanted to be her _friend_.

Yet she had still gone off with the other Careers.

She sighed. Her thoughts and regrets were never going to leave her alone, were they? Out of the blue, a loud rumble echoed again and the vibrations on the ground and on the rocky wall beside her had grown into shaking movements. Were the Gamemakers shaking the mountain to purposefully make her fall of or…?

It was a bad idea to look up. Right then and there, a huge-ass boulder fell down from the high, rocky ground above.

Anri screamed and dodged the boulder, deciding to edge the wall quickly. She tried to go faster but the ground was vibrating too hard. The low rumble turned into a loud crash and she could practically feel the landslide strengthening as stones started grazing her arms. Her foot slipped slightly as she stepped on an unsteady rock and she hopped lightly on her other foot as it began bleeding.

The landslide was literally raining on her now. Anri gritted her teeth and swung her backpack over her shoulder, continuing on despite the stones pouring over her head. The cliff above gave way.

"Anri!" a voice yelled from directly above her.

She gasped and missed her footing. Goodbye Hunger Games. Goodbye Quarter Quell. Goodbye Capitol. Goodbye Victor's Village. Goodbye District Two. Goodbye Careers. Goodbye tributes. Goodbye Vorona. Goodbye Masaomi. Goodbye Mikado. Goodbye sword. Goodbye happiness. Goodbye sadness. Goodbye life.

A rock crashed onto her head and all she saw were stars and crimson red blood. Before she lost consciousness, a hand shot out and gripped her shoulder tightly, saving her from falling into the thousand-foot air below.

Anri looked up and glimpsed Mikado's face before everything went black.

The cannon boomed.

* * *

**CLIFFHANGER~! Was Mikado too late? Did Anri live through the landslide? Were the other tributes (Shizuo, Izaya, Erika, Walker, etc.) affected by the landslide too? Who **_**died? **_** Find out in the next chapter of The Twisted Games.**

**Honestly, my favorite part of this was Erika and Walker vs. the Angry Birds. XD**


	7. The Precious Lives

**Two weeks ago, my uncle died of cancer. Last week, I had to practice for my voice recital. Immediately after that, school decided to be a bitch and stress me out. I had absolutely no time to update. Sorry about that.**

**In short, my life's been hell lately. As a writer who puts her heart into her work, what I feel is reflected in what I write. To the weak and innocent readers, heed this warning: Bloody corpses. That's all I'm gonna say.**

**Last chapter had an all-English soundtrack. Time for an all-Japanese soundtrack: Sakasama No Chou by SNoW, Highschool of the Dead by Kishida Kyoudan, In My World by ROOKiEZ is PUNK'D. ^_^**

* * *

Chapter Seven

The Precious Lives

Kururi cautiously poked at the weird thing on the ground with a stick. It wasn't moving but it definitely must have been alive before. She edged closer, staring at it to determine what exactly it was. A soft rustle sounded behind her and she whipped around to find her brother.

He walked towards her, his knife still in his hand and an alert look on his face. Kururi didn't want to think negatively but the arena was slowly and undoubtedly turning them into animals- hunter or hunted, she did _not _want to think about. "What's that over there?"

She shook her head, looking back down at the skeleton on the ground. It was an animal, that's for sure. But what? Torn-off flesh or fat or whatever was still intact and a seemingly pointy edge of an orange or yellow bone was covered in dried, crusty blood. "No idea. It's a corpse, obviously, but what animal? Maybe a big lizard or a bat or-"

Izaya lowered his knife as he neared his sister. "A bird."

"Yeah. Or a bird," she finished, looking around, "I found a few over there too. I thought they were still alive."

"They must have been alive a few hours ago. This one looks like it was impaled by a dagger," he said quietly, kneeling down to inspect the corpse, "My theory is that they're muttations that attacked tributes here earlier, which is why these are all dead. The big question is where are those tributes now? They couldn't have gone far. Tracing where we came from, the other side is blocked by large rocks from the landslide so..."

Kururi frowned, kicking away a dead bird and setting camp right on the spot. "They went the other direction, then. I don't think they'll be able to hurt us, though. We're totally safe-"

"Of course- the Careers!" her brother interrupted her sharply.

"What? Where?" She retrieved her slingshot, anxiously glancing around them.

Izaya glared at his sister. "No, that's not what I meant. It's just… Whoever set camp in this place a while ago was spying on the Careers!" He pointed at a certain wall of rocks up ahead. "Right there, next to that huge boulder, is the entrance to the Cornucopia cave. Why didn't I notice that before?"

The younger sibling squinted at the boulder. "Well, yeah. If you push that aside, it does look like a cave opening…"

"Whoever thought of spying on the Careers right outside of their territory must have been clever," he continued pensively, pacing as he went through the list of tributes in his mind, "You saw Celty go downhill yesterday, so it's impossible that she came back up in a short amount of time. The guy from District Six went uphill along with the huge, black man with an axe. That leaves… Erika and Walker. It must have been them. Why did they leave this spot, though? It's perfect."

Kururi rolled her eyes. "Whatever, Iza-nii. Let's just go to sleep. We can look for Shizuo and Shinra tomorrow."

He bit his lip. "No. It's obvious that protozoan and I didn't get along at all, so it was actually a good thing when the damn landslide separated us from each other. Besides, we don't have the luxury to share any of our resources. We should focus on killing them. Allies aren't necessary for our survival at this point."

"How about friends?" she whispered, getting inside her sleeping bag, "Humans always need friends."

The older brother froze and stared back at his sister, who was already asleep. The wind whistled and he instinctively wrapped his jacket tighter around him for warmth. Humans… There was only one thing left to do.

He silently left his sister and went to the rocky wall covering the Cornucopia cave. There was an extremely high chance that Erika and Walker were inside instead of the Careers. Spying was a very engaging thing to do, and the only plausible reason they had for leaving their spot was if the Careers left the cave.

The two were most probably looting all the items. Izaya felt the sudden urge to go inside.

Erika and Walker were friendly and seemed like people who would think things through by weighing the advantages. He could simply propose a deal. His sister was safe under their new tree. She didn't have to know. He'd be back before dawn with more weapons and food for them to share.

He reached the large boulder and pushed it with all his might. It didn't budge. He kicked it, punched it, and did everything he could to dislodge the damn thing, but to no avail. That's when he noticed that tiny particles of dust and small pieces of stone were littered around the boulder. Also, not only one, but several medium-sized rocks were wedged in between the edges of the boulder and the rocky wall.

The landslide must have caused the upper mountain rocks to block the entrance.

Erika and Walker were caved in.

Izaya laughed. As soon as the Careers would come back and find the two young tributes trapped inside their fortress, it would give him a chance to manipulate a whole new situation to his advantage.

Oh, how he missed doing that.

He trudged back to their spot and checked to see if Kururi was awake, which, of course, she wasn't. There were great plans in store tomorrow. Only a few minutes since his beautiful discovery of the cave-in brought him several ideas as to how to manipulate the Careers and the two tributes stuck in the cave.

"I'm going to make tomorrow… an _interesting _day," he said loudly to himself for the whole of Panem to hear.

The sky darkened, signalling night time. Izaya rummaged through his pack for any leftover food from the day. No such luck. All they had was tons of water from the rain. Perhaps tomorrow he could hunt first thing in the morning. Then, he and his sister could start his brilliant, fully-formed plan of action.

For now, the night was getting darker and rest was essential.

He laid down his sleeping bag and sat down, looking up at the stars barely visible behind the slowly retreating storm clouds. Soon, the national anthem played and the seal of the Capitol flashed in the sky. The death recap was about to start.

Izaya knew that the person who died must have been victimized by the landslide because the cannon had boomed once, a few minutes after the rocks had started sliding downhill. However, it was highly possible that the Gamemakers aimed to wipe off more tributes with the landslide, which ultimately failed since- well, only _one_ guy got killed. This simply meant hell for the remaining tributes the next day. As if today wasn't hell enough.

He watched tiredly as the district number that appeared in the sky was nine.

And the tribute was Seiji Yagiri.

* * *

Celty Sturluson clutched her shoulder tightly. She had no idea how to properly use leaves as bandages, and droplets of blood were still dripping down on the ground as she walked downhill. A certain bespectacled doctor instantly entered her mind, but she knew that wishing for him and his skills was going to be in vain at this point.

Shinra's words during training echoed in her mind. _There's nothing wrong with making friends. You're scared. You push me away. I know it's the Hunger Games we're getting into, but what does it matter?_

The sun shone brightly and the heat of noon made her sweat and curse. Thinking about Shinra definitely didn't lessen her desperation. She decided to clear her mind by pondering on the recent events in the arena. It was officially the third day. Last night, the death recap revealed that the younger brother of the two siblings from District Nine had died. Doubtlessly, it must have been the landslide which had caused it.

She winced at the memory of having a huge rock hurtling down at her, only to slice open her shoulder.

Well, being chased by muttations the other day was _still _worse.

Fine, she was grateful for the bread the sponsors gave her as soon as she woke up in the morning, but it would have been better if she had gotten proper bandages instead. Perhaps the sponsors thought she could handle it, or maybe she looked hungrier than she looked in pain. Well, yes, it was true. She was _very _hungry.

Now, all there was to do was to go downhill. It seemed like she had finally crossed to the lowest part of the mountain because trees were getting more ubiquitous and animals started appearing more frequently as she descended. The ground was even getting sort of flatter.

Suddenly, she spotted a shining glass-like glint of light in front of her.

Celty smirked and roughly touched it with her spear. Confirming her thoughts, the spear carried a strong vibration, along with a soft sizzle, and its tip was slightly blackened from the touch.

It was a force field.

The Gamemakers obviously didn't want anyone getting off the mountain.

The good part about discovering it was that it proved her extraordinary senses weren't affected by the impact on her shoulder. She could still see extremely sharply, having been able to pick up the presence of the force field as if it was a golden statue floating right in front of her. It would have been bad if she walked into it.

The bad part, however, was that it made Celty's whole trip downhill completely pointless. She wasted time and energy going downhill just to find out that the Gamemakers didn't want any tribute getting off the mountain to escape the arena. It was silly of her to think that they'd let the tributes be able to reach as far as the flat, grassy fields.

Celty groaned and sat down, leaning on a tree which was right next to the force field boundary. She could stay here and wait for other people to come down to simply kill them instead. However, that would be a sort of lazy way to win, so she decided to just rest for a while and fix her shoulder up more carefully before going uphill once more.

She realized that the ground was quite uneven, most probably because lots of soil and rocks fell down all the way to the bottom during the landslide. It would be best if she hurried fixing up her wound since staying in a place where she'd be prone to being buried alive would be extremely risky.

The blood had stopped spilling out at alarming rates and the other leaves Celty had started using were proving to be even more absorbent than the previous ones. She stood up, secured the pickaxe and pack of bread on her belt, and held her spear tightly as she began her trip back upwards. Running across other tributes while still having a wounded and painful shoulder would be a huge disadvantage, so she tried her best to be sneaky and silent.

After a few minutes of the temperature slowly rising and early morning turning into broad daylight, Celty finally heard a sound other than random birds tweeting and her feet occasionally stepping on twigs.

"Where do you think you're going, lady?"

It was the voice of a man.

She quickly hid behind a bent tree and watched as the Career tributes- only Ran Izumii, Slon Ortolski, and Vorona Juvilova- confronted an aggravated Namie Yagiri. Celty recognized Namie as the older sister of the only guy who died from the landslide yesterday. The three had their backs to her while the black-haired woman was the only one facing the redhead.

"Get out of my way," Namie threatened, although she swallowed nervously, "I simply want to go downhill."

Ran cackled cruelly. "What? You think we're going to just let you go? You think you're going to win the fucking Hunger Games? Fight first, else be called a coward! It's just a shame you're so pretty…"

Celty gripped her spear, aiming it to throw at Ran. It was so tempting to kill him.

Namie didn't move. She stood her ground and closed her eyes, as if waiting for the death blow. Ran glared at her, while Slon and Vorona watched the scene unfold. Before Celty could make a move, Namie spoke loudly, "Kill me. I'd rather be with my brother than idiotically think I'd stand a chance against you three. Because I honestly really don't. I _want_ to die." Her dark eyes momentarily flickered over to the redhead's emerald green ones.

She saw Celty hiding. She knew Celty planned to save her.

She didn't want to be saved.

Then, a broken whisper. "I'm coming, Seiji."

Celty felt her eyes widen and lowered her spear, shocked. Ran immediately chopped her head off with his trident- a gift from his sponsors. Namie's head rolled down right next to the tree, leaving a trail of blood, and the cannon boomed, signalling her obvious death. Slon's obnoxious laugh was heard and Vorona giggled uneasily as they looted her bag.

Vorona spoke gleefully, "Hey, she's got bow and arrows. I'd like to keep this."

Ran answered softly, "Bow and arrows, huh? I'm getting that, thank you very much. Now hand it over."

"No way. I found it first! You may be the leader but that doesn't mean you get everything."

"If it wasn't for me, your boyfriend would have died from the fucking landslide yesterday, ungrateful bitch!"

"He's not my boyfriend. Besides, you already have that goddamn trident."

"Do you really want to oppose me?"

"Hell yeah, I-!"

"Vorona, don't! Just stop it," Slon interrupted hysterically, putting himself in between the two arguing tributes. Their banter was getting too heated. "It's not worth it. You can use rock paper scissors or something."

Ran grinned nastily. "Step aside, idiot. Your girl wants _my _bow and arrows, but I'm the one who killed the woman who previously owned them. Are you blind?"

Vorona ignored Slon. "I found the damn items. Just give them to me. You're being fucking unfair all the time!"

"You want to be on my kill list, right next to that Anri girl?"

"Well, she's way better than you'll ever be!"

Celty barely contained her gasp as the sound of metal meeting flesh echoed throughout the area. She prayed that none of them heard her and risked a peek at the Careers, inching slightly sideways in a cautious manner.

It was Slon. He had stepped in front of Vorona and received the end of the bloody trident.

"N-no… Slon… NO!" She lowered her knife and caught her friend. He gazed up at her and their eyes locked in a final conversation before Slon went limp and his last words of love went stale on his lips. Vorona sobbed freely when the cannon resounded right afterwards. "Wh-why…?"

Then, the blonde screamed and threw a knife at Ran, who wasn't able to dodge and got hit in the arm. She sprinted away from the scene, tossing the bow and arrows way downhill and out of sight. Ran roared and chased her, his weapon still in his good hand and bloody murder the only thing on his mind.

Celty stepped forward from her hiding place and silently watched as the Capitol's aircraft flew above her and descended the huge, metallic hand, which collected the corpses of the two dead tributes. She paled as Slon's body went up first, away from the arena and Vorona forever. Truly, the Hunger Games was a cruel thing.

The metal claw went back for Namie's headless body. Celty quickly closed the woman's eyes and gently placed the head where it should have been attached to the neck, making it look like a decent corpse.

She clenched her fists as the detached body and head were brought up to the aircraft as well. After a few minutes of standing still in silent rage, she retrieved her tab and typed. [The Capitol has no right to encourage murder and throw away the precious lives of their own people.] Her hand shook as she raised the tab up and stared defiantly at the pink and red sky for the world to see. It was probably stupid of her to openly show opposition, but her frustration had reached its limit.

Two tributes dead in less than five minutes. There were only fifteen of them left.

* * *

"This place reminds me of Amnesia," Walker said amusedly, holding up his lantern, "You know- the video game."

"Yeah. Except we're not in a castle, but in a mountain," Erika added thoughtfully, turning to look at her companion, "And we're not in Prussia, wherever that awesome place is. And the darkness doesn't make us insane. And instead of deadly bros, there are a whole bunch of tributes out to kill us… Yup, totally like Amnesia!"

They were both on either side of the cave, exploring as much as possible to learn whatever they could. This honestly wasn't much, seeing how the cave's sole purpose was to house the horn of the Cornucopia.

Walker stomped, mildly frustrated, on a set of broken arrows. "Okay fine, maybe not so much. But, you know, the atmosphere and stuff is still sorta similar," he said, "I wonder why the Careers left this place, though."

The black-haired woman smirked, momentarily pausing her search. "Well, I have a theory about that but I don't know if it's true. You see, Walker, when the Careers left the cave, there were only three of them. We saw the girl leave the cave too yesterday right before it rained, right? She must have run away from them for some reason."

He nodded. "Yup. Wait, I think I know where this is going! They went after her. Is that what you're thinking? There's no other plausible reason as to why they'd suddenly up and away like that."

It was her turn to nod. "Exactly. I also happened to remember the names of the other tributes. The ugly Career who swung maces around during training was Ran. I know there were two friends from District One. The girl we saw leave the cave earlier today was Anri Sonohara. I recall her having short black hair. They could have gone to kill her or something!"

"That makes sense," the blond answered, crossing his arms as he turned to look at her. "However, why do you think she'd leave? Wouldn't it be a better explanation if she went out to hunt for food or kill other tributes, and then got lost or killed? After that, the others must have left as well to look for her. She's still a _Career._"

Erika shook her head, worried. "I don't know… I just have a feeling she's a good person who wanted to get away from the other three. She didn't seem bloodthirsty during training or conceited during the interviews."

She looked up as Walker laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. He grinned cheerfully. "You know what? I DON'T CAAAREEE. Well, in a milder tone, that's the least of our worries. I'd prefer it if we focused on getting out of this cave. Neither the Careers nor Anri can do anything to us as long as we're stuck here."

"Right," she laughed, holding his hand as they set up their sleeping bags. "We might actually even win the Games just by staying here! Besides, we have Pikachu Powaaa!"

Neither of them mentioned the possibility of killing each other.

* * *

The sun was starting to set and the temperature was getting colder. Colors of orange and pink and red splashed across the sky like paint and the tall rocky landscape of the mountain covered the purple clouds. No one would have expected such tragedy and bloodshed happening on the mountain. It was too perfect a picture.

That was all Masaomi could think about as he miserably trudged on the stony path, taking the rear of the group. In the Hunger Games, everything was so fucking _ironic_. People fell in love and killed each other, protected each other and murdered together, cursed profusely and laughed happily, foraged and got hurt, _lived _and _died_.

The place seemed to be looking pretty just to spite them all.

Mikado and Anri walked ahead of their blond friend, talking softly as they clutched onto their sorry excuse of bandages and searched anxiously for any form of shelter available.

The landslide yesterday really took a toll on them all. Mikado wasn't able to walk for hours and Anri had a concussion that seemed to have caused her lots of pain, plus several injuries. Masaomi was glad neither of them died, but soon enough, the two had started to treat him like a third wheel of sorts, talking to each other with an obvious intent of sparking up a relationship.

This made Masaomi feel left out- almost _envious_ of the two. He missed Saki. He missed her so much that it hurt to see other people get their happy endings (even in the fucking Hunger Games), like Mikado and Anri, and even Careers like Vorona and Slon. They even had the chance to spend their last moments together! What did he ever do to have to suffer this punishment? It was ironic indeed.

"Mikado!" Anri's voice alerted him from his thoughts.

"I'm fine," came the shy boy's reply as he lightly smiled at his two friends. He seemed to have almost fallen over, "I just almost tripped over something. It's been getting really grassy around this area so it's been hard to see what to step on…" He bended over to pick up the object of his almost fall.

Anri tilted her head, confused, as Mikado held up a sheath of arrows. "Arrows? Why are there arrows here?"

The three of them immediately looked around them, alerted by the fact that someone could still be nearby. Masaomi shook his head. "No one's here. There's not even a single sound except for us. Who could have dropped that, though?"

Mikado frowned. "If there are arrows, then there has to be a bow." He went off further downhill, looking down at the ground to look for the so-called bow. Anri and Masaomi exchanged confused glances as they followed suit. A few seconds passed as the sounds of them pushing away long stalks of grass echoed around the area.

Anri's voice resounded. "There's a trail of blood over here. You think the cannon a while ago was meant for whoever died in this place? Well, there were _two _cannons a while ago…"

"That's possible," Masaomi mumbled, still searching.

"I found it!" Mikado held up a dark brown bow. "We have bow and arrows now. The more weapons, the better. Besides, it'd be easier to hunt for game using these, right?"

Masaomi raised an eyebrow. "I hate to break it to you, friend, but I don't know how to use a bow. I think Miss Big Boobies over here doesn't know either, since she prefers swor-"

"Wh-what did you just call me?" the girl asked, mildly bewildered. "I don't-"

"I know the basics of archery. Remember the first two days of training? I worked on that station the whole time and I think I can handle it," Mikado interrupted impatiently, the dark look coming over his eyes again. "At least, I did a better job with bow and arrows rather than knives and daggers when I trained…"

The blond merely chuckled. "Whatever you say, 'Kado."

Suddenly, before the bow and arrow-wielding boy could answer, another voice joined in the air.

"Try using that against me, then, why don't you?"

It was Ran Izumii. Anri growled angrily, instantly swiping at him with her sword and missing as he evaded. Masaomi turned and ducked the mad Career tribute's swing at him, instead slashing at his arm with a dagger. The three engaged in intense combat while Mikado struggled to fix the bow.

One on the left leg. One on the right leg. The other only missed Ran Izumii's heart by a few inches, hitting his shoulder instead. Arrows swiftly hit Ran's body one after the other. Mikado smirked.

"FUCK YOOOUUU!" The man screamed furiously as he fell.

Mikado grinned at the fallen Career, grabbed Anri, and practically threw her behind him protectively. He didn't lower his bow, hesitating as he aimed his loaded arrow right at the Career's heart.

Ran laughed hysterically, looking like a bloodied rag doll on the ground with three arrows sticking out of his body and eyes widened in utter joy. He laughed and laughed and laughed. The three paled as they looked at him and gripped their weapons tightly, preparing to do away with him one way or another.

He raised up his hand, which tightly clutched a cylinder- no, a _bomb_. A small one, but nevertheless, one that could cause some damage.

"Slon dead… Vorona left… Fuck this place! Shoot me, bastards, why don't you? Do that… And I'll activate this bomb right here and now. If I die, then you're fucking dying with me," he said softly, trying and failing to sit up. His arm, however, was perfectly capable of throwing an activated bomb at them. "Either way, I'd throw this thing at you and you know that. Come on, cowards. If you kill me, I'll fucking kill you too. It's a favor, isn't it? DO IT!"

A minute passed by. "For the Dollars and for Panem," Mikado whispered quietly. He knew the whole nation could still hear him, including his own gang members, the Capitol, and President Snow. His words- his last words- would cause rebellion. There was no turning back.

Besides, he and his friends would be dead and safe by the time the Games ended.

Several things happened at once. He shot the arrow at Ran's bloody body, but felt both Masaomi and Anri desperately push his aim away. The arrow briefly soared through the air and fell down to surrender to gravity as it passed the cylindrical bomb. It lodged itself into the ground next to Ran with a thump.

A click activated the bomb and Ran threw it at them with all his might.

Anri could only let out a small "no!", her hands holding both her friends' hands as she closed her eyes and waited for impact. Why did Mikado give up that easily? They were going to find a way! They were going to survive somehow past all the challenges the Games had to offer… And what then?

Out of the blue, a new voice muttered hoarsely right next to her ear. "Fighting… Not good."

It was neither Mikado, Masaomi, nor Ran's

Boom! Splat! A wet and thick liquid splattered onto her face, her clothes, and her body. Was it blood? She couldn't help but feel confused when the explosion resounded throughout the mountain and she felt herself alive, whole, and still clutching her friends nervously.

The cannon boomed.

Curious, her eyes opened and a gruesome sight made her gasp in shock.

The body of a tribute was decapitated on the ground before them. Only half of the head was distinguishable from the rest of the grotesque mess. The limbs were merely jagged stumps of muscle and vein poking out of the torso. Pieces of the red-stained, tan skin were littered here and there on the ground around the corpse.

The misshapen bomb was in the mangled remains of what seemed to be the hand of the tribute, bone and tissue looking as one.

Ran, covered head to toe in the blood of the unknown man, looked as shocked as the three of them. He pulled away the arrows from his body and half-ran, half-stumbled away from the scene in utter bewilderment.

The three teens motionlessly stared at the body, not bothering to stop the damned Career due to the shock of the fact that someone had _saved _them from death. Someone they could barely even recognize anymore. The red sky caused by the sunset matched the color of the blood on the ground and on the trees and on their clothes.

The man's blood had splattered _everywhere_.

Masaomi bravely wiped the blood from his face and stepped forward to fix the awkward placing of the limbs.

It still didn't look like a decent corpse by the time he was done. Several body parts were missing, like fingers, toes, and an eye. The person was extremely tall, probably as tall as Shizuo, but had darker skin. Anri felt tears slowly falling down her face and she sobbed, turning away from the scene. The voice of the tribute whispering in her ear echoed throughout her brain, taunting her.

_Fighting… Not good._

Whose voice was it? Who was their sudden savior?

Mikado couldn't bear to even put his arms around Anri comfortingly or join Masaomi as he said a short mumble of goodbye to the tribute. He didn't move when the metal claw retrieved the person's body, bit by bloody bit. He couldn't say anything when Anri asked him if he was okay.

He backtracked to sort out his thoughts. The unknown tribute caught the bomb, protecting them from it. The bomb was thrown by Ran, who activated the bomb because Mikado had shot an arrow at him. He decided to shoot as a sign to the Capitol and the rest of Panem that he _did _have the power to go against fate and do what he wanted, which was to quickly end things for him, Masaomi, and Anri, and also to rid the world of Ran.

_For the Dollars and for Panem… _He mentioned the Dollars for the world to hear, thinking his life would end.

He and his friends were still miraculously alive due to the nameless tribute's sacrifice.

He failed to kill Ran Izumii, who was running loose on the mountain.

He was in _deep shit_.

* * *

**I REFRESHED THE POLL AGAIN. VOTE FOR THE TRIBUTES ON MY PROFILE. (Or else I won't update)**

**Sushi for whoever guesses the identity of the unknown person who saved the three. I gave hints here and there. :(**

**Brofist to those who got the light PewDiePie references during Erika and Walker's scene! XD**


End file.
